


From the Flames of the Past

by msdevindanielle



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-28
Updated: 2014-04-16
Packaged: 2018-01-17 07:42:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 36,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1379482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/msdevindanielle/pseuds/msdevindanielle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The team is thrown when a face from one of their pasts pops up unexpectedly. And what is going on at S.H.I.E.L.D.? Set in between Yes Men and End of the Beginning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It happened too fast, and he knew it.

She had remembered the technique he'd shown her months ago, easily maneuvering to his firing side and getting under his arm, managing to bend his thumb and grab the barrel in a matter of a few seconds. The gun out of his grasp, he had been about to congratulate her when she had gone one step further. Before he knew it, she had twisted his arm behind him and kicked the back of his knee, effectively pinning him to the ground. It had surprised him, but he could've fought back harder.

One look at her face told him that she knew it, too.

"Damn it, Ward, you have  _got_  to stop going easy on me." Skye held out a hand to help him off the ground, and even though he didn't need it, he let her. He had a feeling she was going to go on another rant again. "Okay? I told you I wanted to train harder. What happened with Quinn was, like, the worst thing ever, and I  _never_ want to be vulnerable like that again. But I can't  _do that_  unless you stop acting like I'm going to explode whenever you touch me."

He held up his hands, trying to pacify her. Her face was angrier than he'd seen in a long time. "Skye, I  _know_ , all right? But you're still recovering." He didn't think it was possible, but her glare intensified. Ward tried to find the right words to explain. He wanted Skye to be protected probably more than she wanted it herself, but he knew he had to make sure she took it easy. He'd seen too many of his classmates wash out at the Academy because they tried to jump back too quickly after an injury. And Skye hadn't just busted her knee. She'd been shot in the stomach. Twice.

"Look, it's going to take some time before you're back at the top of your game."

"Ward, I'm totally-"

"And that's nothing to be ashamed of," he continued, talking over her. "So we're going to start easy and increase the difficulty when I say you're ready. Besides, Simmons will have my head if I overwork you."

Skye's face relaxed a little. "Yeah, right," she said, lightly punching his shoulder. "I think you're just getting lazy." She was teasing him, but he couldn't manage to drudge up a smile in return.

"I'm not kidding." She rolled her eyes and sighed in exasperation.

Skye was still a complete mystery to him, an enigma more puzzling than an 0-8-4, but Ward was slowly learning how to interact with her, and had figured out that the quickest way to disarm her fury was through humor. He knew he was setting himself up for ridicule, so before he could think about it too much, he placed his hands on his hips. "I believe her exact words were," he began, raising his voice to a pitch that probably defied the laws of masculinity. "Agent Ward, if you so much as raise her heart rate above 67.3% of her target or force her to exercise for longer than the 26 minutes Dr. What's-His-Face recommends in this article from a journal you've never heard of, I will positively scream and for your punishment, I shall subject you to a unique form of torture in which I will outline in detail the origins and development of literally everything you eat."

Ward felt his cheeks burning. That was a bit more than he had originally intended, and he knew his British accent was ridiculous. (He had never been able to master it, despite being fluent in six languages.)

He looked up, expecting to see a smile on Skye's face, but all he saw was pure shock, her mouth open in what had to have been complete disbelief. Damn. Still swinging and missing.

"Oh…my…God," she finally managed to get out, and he was relieved to see her break into a huge grin, even though he knew that she was most definitely laughing at his humiliation and not at his terrible endeavor to be funny. She shook her head, and looked like she was trying to choose the best way to make fun of him, but she simply laughed again because she didn't have to. He had successfully embarrassed himself all on his own. When she had calmed down, he noticed her gaze wander to somewhere over his right shoulder. Her eyes widened as she clapped a hand to her mouth, barely containing another snicker.

Ward froze, and closed his eyes. He was regretting his poor attempt at humor more and more with every passing second, and braced himself for the voice of the person he knew was standing right behind him.

"Oh, dear. Was that supposed to be me?" He turned around slowly to see Simmons standing on the stairwell, her arms folded. "You're nearly as bad as Fitz. For the last time, that is  _not_  how I sound." Ward steadfastly avoided her eyes as she came down the steps, and he felt a little better when he noticed that she was giving her stern face to both him and Skye. "And while I'm sure you specialists are quite used to getting shot at and jumping right back into the field, I think we can all agree that Skye's circumstances are just a tad more severe."

He tried to nod at her, letting her know that he had been saying exactly the same thing, but she must have taken his gesture as sarcastic because she turned on him. "And honestly, I can't believe you would think that a rigorous regimen would be appropriate for someone at her level of recovery. As her supervising officer, you should know better. We have no idea how exactly the GH-325 has worked to heal her damaged tissue, and continuing in this manner could potentially reopen her wounds for all we know. All of our hard work and her progress will have been for nothing." She breathed out heavily, and he glanced away from her intense gaze, staring at the ground as her words sunk in.

If anyone had told him the first day he had met Simmons that in a few short months, she would be able to reduce him to feeling like he'd been sent to the principal's office, he would've scoffed in their faces. He took a deep breath and looked at her, trying to put as much sincerity into his expression. "I'm sorry, Simmons." Her eyes softened a little, but he still saw the fear and anxiety in her face. It was the same fear and anxiety he felt in his chest whenever he thought about those days when they didn't know if Skye was going to make it.

" _What_? No, Ward." He turned to see Skye looking at the two of them like they'd lost their minds. "This is ridiculous. Simmons,  _I'm fine_. You seriously need to stop worrying about me. Besides, it's not like he's punching me in the gut or anything." She patted her stomach. "Everything's a-okay right here. I mean, besides the fact that I need to do some serious crunches because being under Dr. Simmons's house arrest has effectively erased any advance towards a six-pack I had before."

Simmons didn't smile, and her voice was quiet when she responded. "You nearly died, Skye. It's nothing to joke about." Skye must have noticed how much this was affecting her friend, because whatever retaliation she undoubtedly had planned remained unspoken. "Come on," Simmons said a little more brightly, turning around to open the lab doors. "We need to check your vitals."

Skye wasn't going to give in so easily. "But we're not done yet!"

"Yes, you are," Simmons replied crisply. "We'll be arriving at the Hub in twenty minutes."

Ward was momentarily thrown. He hadn't known about that. "The Hub? We just refueled. What do we need to go to the Hub for?" He glanced over at Skye, expecting to see the same confusion on her face, but oddly she didn't look very surprised.

Simmons shook her head. "Haven't the faintest. But during our last rendezvous there, I only got a measly five minutes with the new chem kit, so I for one am not going to waste a single second on this bloody airplane when we arrive."

"Yeah, I wouldn't get your hopes up." They all turned around to see Fitz entering the lab. "Do any of you not look at a calendar anymore? The Academies just had their graduations. The place is going to be swarming with new agents getting briefed."

An unreadable expression passed over Simmons's face, and she groaned quietly. "Damn," she muttered. "Maybe I will stay on the Bus."

"I'll stay with you," Skye sighed. "Last time was not fun. At all."

Ward smirked as he remembered the bracelet she'd hated so much. She didn't have to wear it anymore (she'd definitely earned her place on the team now), but she probably still saw the Hub as a boring facility in which she was not allowed to play with any of the computers.

"Actually, Skye," he said, putting together some of the pieces in his head. "Since you're no longer under surveillance, Coulson's probably gonna want to get you your Level 1 badge. It's kind of overdue."

Skye looked at him with skepticism, probably assuming that he was teasing her. When she saw that he wasn't joking, her face lit up. "Are you serious?" He nodded, barely fighting back his own smile at seeing her so excited. "Oh my God, did you hear that, FitzSimmons? I'm gonna be a real S.H.I.E.L.D. agent!"

Simmons gave her a weak smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, but Fitz's grin was bigger than Ward had seen in a while. "About damn time," he said.

"Wait, you said we're gonna be there in twenty minutes? What are we waiting for? Come on, Simmons. We have charts to fill out and you haven't gotten to play Dracula yet today." Simmons rolled her eyes and followed Skye to the back of the lab, muttering something about blood samples and how it was a wonder any of them had survived without her.

* * *

She found the letter on the floor of her dorm room the morning of graduation. She looked at it curiously, wondering who would bother to personally slide the note under her doorway instead of depositing it in her postbox in the lobby.

She was surprised to notice that the letter was sealed with the famous S.H.I.E.L.D. insignia, the eagle staring up at her from the red wax. She hadn't seen a real wax seal in ages, and thought red was an odd color choice, but she couldn't stop the small shiver that traveled down her spine as she wondered what could be inside. She ran her finger over the crest, hesitant to break something so beautiful, but her curiosity won over. She tore the envelope open.

Her eyes scanned the message, and her heart began to race. She could hardly believe what she was reading. Could this really be for her? Surely this was meant to be some sort of prank. She wasn't a freshman anymore, but she was still one of the youngest graduates to pass through the Academy. Perhaps some of the older students had thought to put her in her place with this. But no. Her name was clearly written at the top of the page, and it was signed by a Level 7 S.H.I.E.L.D. operative. Some of her classmates were cheeky, but they were not so mad as to forge the signature of a superior officer.

After she had memorized its contents, she took a match to the letter, letting the ashes fall through her fingers into the rubbish bin.

* * *

Skye exercised every bit of self-control she possessed to keep from jumping up and down as they entered the Hub. She decided that she would be on her best behavior, and followed closely behind Coulson so he would know that she was very, very serious about getting her badge.

It was a good thing she had already been to the Hub, because if she had been as awestruck as she'd been the first time, she would've definitely lost her group. The lobby was packed with people, and most of them didn't look like they could be much older than her. Skye was a little irritated that the Academies happened to send all their graduates on the one day she was becoming a fully-fledged S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. She let out a long sigh. Today was probably going to be a lot of waiting around, something she had never really been good at.

As they waited to pass through security, she and Fitz made up a game they decided to call Sorting Hat, and it was proving to be much more entertaining than she would have originally presumed.

"Oh! What about him?"

" _Definitely_  Operations."

"What makes you say that?"

"The look in his eyes, obviously. That blank stare. He looks like he's never assembled a reflux accumulator in his life."

"No, I'm not so sure," Skye shook her head. "I mean, look at his arms. There's, like, no muscle there. There's no way he can be Operations."

As they made their way into the main atrium, Fitz opened his mouth to argue further when a high voice coming from off to the right somehow made itself heard over the din.

"Leo!"

A small girl who looked like she could've still been in high school ran up to Fitz and latched her arms around his neck. Skye simply stood there, stunned. Fitz seemed surprised at first but smiled after a second and hugged the girl back. They obviously knew each other. What the hell? It wasn't every day girls threw themselves in Fitz's arms. Did he have a girlfriend she didn't know about? Skye dismissed that crazy idea. No. That was impossible.

After a few seconds, the girl pulled away, but not before Fitz had brushed his lips on her cheek. It wasn't very romantic, but it was the most affectionate she'd ever seen Fitz. The curiosity was killing her. Who  _was_  she?

"So, how do you like the Hub? Have you gotten your badge yet?"

"Oh my goodness, Leo, it's amazing." Her brown eyes lit up as she babbled on about how excited she was to see the labs and how she couldn't believe he was there and there was something in there about science but Skye couldn't exactly follow because she was mostly distracted by trying to peg her. She had a familiar-looking face, but Skye was fairly certain she'd never seen her before. She had always been good with faces, and this one was startlingly beautiful. Her golden hair fell in loose curls on her petite shoulders, and there were two perfect dimples on her cheeks when she smiled. The accent sounded British, but that didn't necessarily mean anything. Skye looked over at the rest of the team and was glad to see that most of them seemed about as clueless as she was. Good. At least she wasn't the only one out of the loop this time. She turned to Simmons for help, but the biochemist's eyes were dutifully trained on the ground. Uh oh. Now Skye was even more intrigued.

Fitz and the mystery girl were still in their own little world. "Oh, I'm so glad to hear your mum's doing better. And what about the twins? Is Lucy still-"

Fitz laughed. "Threatening to move out if she doesn't get a car? No, I think she's calmed down a bit, but Mum's still worried about her. Rosie's just got head girl, though."

"Really?" Her smile was so genuine that Skye felt the edges of her lips curl up of their own accord. This girl's energy was infectious. "I'm so pleased. I knew she'd get it. She'll be perfect. And how's little Colin?"

"Not exactly a wee lad anymore," Fitz sighed. "When he assembled his first circuit board at Christmas, Mum said, 'Not another one.'"

The girl scrunched up her face in sympathy but clasped her hands together over her chest. "Oh, that's positively adorable. I can't wait to see him again. It's been ages." She paused before placing a hand on Fitz's arm and lowered her voice. "And how are you, Leo? Is everything all right?"

He gave her a small smile. "Yeah, everything's fine." Skye saw through his fib, knowing that he was probably leaving out a lot of the dangerous stuff the team had been involved in over the past few months for her sake. But Skye could tell that Mystery Girl wasn't fooled, either. She must have thought it was not the right time or place to press further, though, because she simply smiled at him and nodded before looking over at Simmons.

Her confident demeanor seemed to diminish a little. "Hello, Jemma," she ventured timidly. "It's good to see you." Simmons simply gave her a tight smile in response, looking extremely uncomfortable. Everything about this encounter was so weird. Skye needed some answers. She was about to open her mouth and ask the question she knew everyone else wanted her to ask when she was caught off-guard as Mystery Girl trained her gaze on her. Skye was startled even further when the girl's smile grew wider.

"You must be Skye. I've heard so much about you."

Skye was so shocked that it took her a few seconds before she replied. "Really? From who?"

"Leo, of course. He talks about you almost as much as he talks about Jemma. Trust me, that's quite a lot."

Skye shook her head in bewilderment, and turned to look at Fitz, whose face had turned red and who was actively avoiding her gaze. She was about to respond, but the girl had already moved to the person standing next to Skye.

"Agent Coulson, it is an absolute honor." She shook his hand vigorously, and the look on her face was one of pure awe. Skye tried not to laugh at Coulson's expression, which exuded the same confusion she was feeling at the moment. "Your courage and bravery in the Battle of New York was  _truly_  inspirational, and I was  _so_ delighted to hear of your survival."

Despite the fact that Coulson was as much in the dark as Skye, he had never been immune to flattery. "I like her," he said, smirking at May.

Skye could tell May was trying not to roll her eyes for Mystery Girl's sake, who was positively beaming. Coulson turned back to face her, and looked as if he was about to ask who on earth she was (as nicely as possible, of course), but she had moved on again.

Her enthusiasm became a little more subdued as she stood in front of the Cavalry. "Agent May," she nodded politely. Skye expected May to give her her signature cold stare, but to her surprise (Skye had lost count of how many times she'd been surprised in the last five minutes), May simply gave the girl a small smile and a respectful nod in return.

Finally, Mystery Girl had made her way to Ward, who had his arms folded and who was the least successful out of all of them at hiding his confusion. The girl had been a constant flurry of motion since Skye had laid eyes on her, but one look at Ward made her movements still and Skye noticed her eyes glistening with tears.  _What the hell was going on_?

"Oh!" she exclaimed quietly. "You must…be Agent Grant Ward." Her voice cracked as she gave him a watery smile.

"Yeah…" Ward said slowly, looking completely baffled and slightly alarmed. He fidgeted a little. "But…most people don't…start crying when they meet me…"

Maybe it was the strangeness of the whole situation, but before she could stop herself, Skye snorted. She tried covering it up by clearing her throat, but everyone's eyes had already focused on her. "Well, I mean, not  _right_  away, but you _have_  made people cry, Ward."

Mystery Girl seemed slightly embarrassed. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry. It's just that…" She paused, looking at Ward again. "Thank you… _so_  much…for saving my sister's life."

Something played at the edge of Skye's mind, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Ward simply looked more confused. "Your sister?" he asked in bewilderment.

"Yes, of course." Her face faltered. She turned her head to glance at Skye, and as her eyes traveled over the group, it looked like something clicked in her head. They were all looking at her politely, but something had definitely been lost in translation.

"Do…none of you know who I am?"

There was a brief pause as the four of them looked at each other and then slowly shook their heads. Skye figured it out a second too late. It was in the look of panic that flashed over her face. Skye had seen that face before.

Mystery Girl fixed her eyes on Simmons, the panic in her expression replaced with hurt. "You didn't tell them about me?"

Simmons glanced up, guilt written clearly on her face. "Everyone, I'd like you to meet Ellie Simmons...my sister."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm almost completely certain that Simmons is an only child, but I thought it would be fun to play around with the idea of her having a sister. Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you enjoy the rest of the story! Any feedback is greatly appreciated. :)


	2. Chapter 2

Skye was the first to recover from the shock, but her reaction wasn't fast enough to prevent one of the most awkward silences she'd ever experienced. Later she realized she probably should have had more tact, but the first thing she did was hit Simmons's arm.

"What the hell, Simmons? You didn't tell me you had a sister!"

Simmons had a pained expression on her face that she usually wore when she'd been caught in a lie. Skye was about to press further when she felt someone nudge her arm. She turned to see Coulson glaring at her, his eyes telling her to save her burning questions for later.

"None of us knew," he said apologetically, giving the girl a small smile. "We're very sorry. It's really nice to meet you, Ellie."

For her part, Ellie was staring at the ground, her cheeks a bright shade of pink. Skye felt a pang of sympathy for her. She had burst into their lives with wide-eyed optimism, probably assuming that they would be as excited to meet her as she had been to meet them. And to find out that her own sister hadn't even mentioned her? That had to be humiliating. Skye was surprised. Simmons didn't seem like the kind of person who would do something like that.

Her enthusiasm gone, Ellie looked like she wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible. She stumbled over her words. "Um…thank you. I…I have to head to the lab for, er, training. Excuse me." Without looking at any of them, she took off down one of the hallways.

Skye was about to turn on Simmons again, but she noticed Fitz was already glaring at his partner. "That was really smooth, Simmons."

"Yeah, seriously," Skye joined in. "I can name all of Fitz's brothers and sisters, and I even know the family history of Mr. Decepticon over there," she gestured vaguely towards Ward. "And not once did you think to mention the fact that you have a sister?"

Simmons still looked uncomfortable. "Nobody ever asked," she said with affected nonchalance. "Besides, our relationship isn't exactly…the greatest."

Skye fought the urge to roll her eyes. "Well, I gathered that," she said sarcastically, and immediately regretted doing so at the look of hurt on Simmons's face. Skye realized that of all people, she probably didn't have any right to pass judgment. What did  _she_  know about family? But she was still a little disappointed that Simmons hadn't told her about something so big. She thought that they were closer than that, but she must've been wrong. Or maybe she just didn't know the whole story. She softened her voice. "Your sister seemed really sweet, Simmons."

Simmons laughed humorlessly. "Oh, trust me. She is a nightmare. Ellie might seem sweet at first, but that's just to reel you in. And once she's got you, she becomes literally one of the most annoying people on the planet."

Skye noticed a look of irritation pass over Fitz's face as he sighed quietly. "She's really not that bad, Simmons."

"Yeah, uh, you guys looked pretty friendly over there," Skye smirked at him, hoping to at least get some of her questions answered. "Did you and-" she gestured in the general direction Ellie had gone. "I mean, were you guys ever, like-"

FitzSimmons collectively responded at the same time, which Skye figured was to be expected. Simmons simply snorted derisively, muttering, "She wishes. Been fancying him for ages." Fitz was opening and closing his mouth in astonishment. "Bloody hell, Skye, how can you-" he stammered. "To even suggest such a thing. She's like my own sister, for God's sake. Honestly, what are you thinking spouting out such nonsense-"

"Whoa, okay, sorry," Skye interrupted him, laughing a little. "I didn't realize it was such a touchy subject." Who was she kidding? It was Fitz.

Fitz recovered his composure. "Are we done spewing out rash insinuations then?" He motioned between the two of them, but didn't wait for a response. "Good. Because it looks like, once again, I'm gonna have to clean up your mess," he told Simmons before turning around and heading toward a pair of sliding glass doors.

Simmons sighed. "Fitz, where are you going? The labs aren't that way."

"She's not going to the lab," he called out, and turned around to face them as he continued walking backwards. "And you know what, Simmons? It's really sad that of all the people who would know that, it's not her own sister."

As Fitz disappeared through the doors, Skye turned to Simmons, who looked like she was trying very hard not to cry. "Hey," she said, lightly nudging Simmons's arm. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

Simmons shook her head and attempted a smile. "No, that's quite all right, Skye." She cleared her throat. "I actually  _do_  need to head to the labs to…restock…a few of our supplies on the Bus and to…look up some…things." Skye eyed her skeptically. Simmons had mentioned wanting to go to the labs earlier, but the way she was speaking now, drawing out and over enunciating her words, told Skye that she was hiding something. Before she could ask her what she was up to, though, Simmons had briskly walked away, vanishing into the throngs of agents in the atrium.

Skye shared a glance with Coulson, and she could tell that he was as suspicious of Simmons's behavior as she was. He had mentioned that Simmons had been antsy about investigating the alien drug that had cured the two of them, but he had also said that he had ordered her to keep the information strictly amongst the team. At least until they had more of a handle on what they were actually dealing with. Skye suspected that this was the main reason they were at the Hub in the first place. In what better place would they be able to investigate top-secret shady projects run by the higher-ups at S.H.I.E.L.D.? Skye and Coulson had agreed to keep their hidden agenda from the rest of the team for their protection. But Skye was a little nervous that Coulson had underestimated Simmons. She was literally a genius. If they weren't careful, she was bound to figure out something about the drug before they did.

But maybe Skye was over thinking the whole situation. Maybe Simmons had just been flustered from the surprise appearance of her sister. Maybe she wasn't acting weird about the drug at all. Besides, Simmons wouldn't disobey a direct order from Coulson. It was  _Simmons_ , the girl who was firmly against "bad-girl shenanigans." No matter what she had figured out or how much she wanted to share her findings with her colleagues, she wouldn't go against Coulson.

Would she?

"Come on," Coulson said, breaking through her thoughts. "Let's go get you your badge." She saw a flash of anxiety in his eyes, and knew the same thoughts were probably going through his head. But he must have thought it would be futile to go after Simmons at the risk of giving themselves away to May and Ward. So going about business as usual was the plan then. She nodded, managing a smile. She really was excited to get her badge.

"Uh, sir?" She turned to see Ward looking questioningly at Coulson. "Do we even need to be here for this?" He was gesturing between himself and May. The Cavalry gave Ward a sidelong glare, probably because he had spoken for her. That was a big no-no.

"You're her S.O.," Coulson replied. "You're gonna need to be there to fill out some of the paperwork. Unless you've suddenly decided that you don't want that responsibility anymore?" Coulson sounded pretty irritated, and even though Skye knew it had nothing to do with Ward, she felt a little secondhand embarrassment for him.

"No, sir," Ward said, visibly uncomfortable.

"Good." Coulson turned to May. "If you want to go back to the Bus, I really don't see why you'd have to stick around with us. Or you can head over to the gym. I know the new Operations kids over there would love the chance to go a few rounds with Agent Melinda May."

She smirked, but shook her head. "I'm sure. No, I don't mind going along to get Skye's badge. She's earned it." Skye was momentarily speechless. The Cavalry was complimenting _her_? May very rarely showed any signs of compassion, and had made it pretty clear from the get-go that she didn't like Skye very much. Could it really be that she had finally started to win her over? Skye hated to admit it, but she wanted May's approval almost as much as she wanted Coulson's. Maybe even more.

But May's odd display of kindness and dismissal of the opportunity to go beat up some cocky graduates wasn't the only weird thing that had happened recently. She had been hanging out with the rest of the team more often than usual lately, and she seemed to be paying closer attention to Skye and Coulson. Skye had figured that she was probably just being paranoid about the secret she and Coulson were keeping from the rest of them, but now she wasn't so sure. And apparently she wasn't alone in her suspicion.

"Really?" Coulson asked doubtfully. "It'll probably be pretty boring."

May raised her eyebrows and gave a dry laugh, heading towards the back of the atrium. "With you three? One of you is bound to embarrass yourself, and that is  _always_ entertaining."

* * *

He'd only been up to the roof of the Hub once. It hadn't really counted, though, because he'd only stayed for a few minutes to test the range of one of the original Golden Retriever prototypes. But as he opened the door and felt the cool ocean breeze on his face, the sunset momentarily blinding him, he wondered why he didn't go up there more often. The Hub inhabited a small island somewhere off the coast of New York, but it was far enough away from the mainland that the sea was all that could be seen for miles around. The labs were great, but sometimes Fitz felt confined, especially if he had to work with anyone other than Jemma. He had discovered almost immediately that he had a very low tolerance for some of the other S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists, and frequently wondered how many of them had actually made it through the Academy. And on days like today, with the facility being so crowded, it could be a bit overwhelming. But standing on top of the Hub, looking out at the sea, Fitz felt more relaxed than he had in months.

It didn't take long for him to spot her. She was sitting on the edge of the roof, her legs dangling over the side. Fitz felt his heart skip a little in alarm. Ellie was so small, a good three inches shorter than Jemma, and her precarious position made it seem like the wind could blow her right off of the roof at any second. It was disconcerting, and brought back images that were permanently seared into his brain. Images of another edge. Another fall. Another Simmons.

He concentrated on taking deep breaths as he walked up behind her. She hadn't heard him come up onto the roof, mostly because of the wind but also from the roar of the airplanes taking off from the deck thirteen stories below. From the small tremor in her shoulders, he could tell that she was crying. Fitz paused, deciding to give her a few moments to herself, and watched some of the planes come and go, the golden sun reflecting off of the aluminium.

Fitz smiled a little to himself as he was reminded of the first time he'd met Ellie. It had been on a much smaller rooftop at the University of Glasgow the summer before he had begun his doctoral studies. She had been at the university for a science camp aimed at "gifted adolescents," which Fitz thought was a pretty ridiculous way to refer to young geniuses. He had been there studying under one of the leading professors in the development of some of the first quantum field generators.

The rooftop was where their paths had crossed, when she had needed to escape the teasing of some of the older kids and he had just needed some air after receiving a distressing letter from his mother. Both of them had been surprised to see the other, but Ellie, always trying to make new friends, quickly engaged him in conversation. Fitz had never been particularly good at social interaction, but he found he was able to talk to Ellie about pretty much anything. Before he had known it, he had managed to tell her about everything that had been bothering him, about how he was nervous to leave his family to study in America, knowing his mother couldn't afford it. In return, she had told him why she liked rooftops so much. "When I'm up here, everything that's down there, all the people who don't understand and all the problems I'm facing, are just tiny specks. When I'm up here, I'm as big as I'd like to be." He'd thought she was pretty wise for someone who had only been twelve years old.

It had been an hour of their time, an hour in which he had been able to talk to someone like him, someone who understood what it was like to be underestimated because of his age. In that hour, she had managed to convince him to continue his academic pursuits. (Later that week, he had received word that M.I.T. was willing to completely fund his doctoral studies.) They hadn't exchanged names, and that was the last time he saw her until Jemma invited him over for Christmas dinner three and a half years later.

He had hardly been able to believe his eyes. Was it really possible that the girl he had just met, a girl who was able to finish his sentences and understood him better than he understood himself, was related to that girl on the rooftop he'd spent an hour with all those years ago? Fitz wouldn't say he believed in fate, but something like destiny had to have brought the Simmons sisters into his life.

Ellie's shoulders had stopped shaking, so Fitz hesitantly made his way to the edge of the roof and carefully sat down next to her. She looked up at him, visibly startled, and quickly wiped the tears off of her face. "Oh! Hello, Leo. Um, I was just-"

"Hey," he interrupted her, nudging her shoulder with his. "It's okay. You don't have to lie. You know you're as bad as your sister at that."

She laughed a little, but it turned into a sigh. "Oh, dear. That was so embarrassing. I'm absolutely mortified."

" _You're_  mortified?" Fitz shook his head. "No, Jemma's the one who should be embarrassed. That was really low of her."

"No, I shouldn't have presumed. Of course you've all had more important things to do than to talk about me."

Fitz looked over at her with concern, but Ellie was staring out at the sea. She was usually so bloody optimistic that it sometimes threw him for a loop when she said something heartbreaking. The worst part was that she had said it matter-of-factly, like it was the most natural thing in the world for her sister to pretend that she didn't exist. Fitz knew that Jemma had her reasons for not wanting to talk too much about Ellie, but that didn't excuse her behavior. Ellie was strong, a lot stronger than she looked, but Fitz knew how much she looked up to Jemma.

"It's not that, really." He willed her to look at him. "I don't want to defend her, but being out in the field…well, it hasn't been what either of us expected, to say the least. The Academy really does a piss-poor job of preparing us to go out there."

Tears welled up in her eyes again, and he cursed himself. What had he said this time? She looked away from him and scoffed. "You don't think I know that? I had to find out that she jumped out of a bloody airplane in probably the worst possible way."

Fitz groaned, wincing at the memory of that terrible phone call. "I know, I'm so sorry, El. I thought she'd told you by then."

"It's not your fault, Leo. It's just…what if she had-" Her voice cracked, and Fitz quickly put his arm around her.

"Hey. She's fine. It's nothing to worry about anymore."

She glanced up at him pleadingly. "But what if she  _hadn't_  been? What if Agent Ward had been unable to get to her? You said yourself she jumped a full  _eighteen_  seconds before he did! Out of a plane that was already moving at-"

"Ellie, stop." Fitz couldn't bear to see her cry, but he also didn't want to dwell on her words anymore. Those words voiced the fears that kept him awake at night. The time he spent between wakefulness and sleep was the time he spent in the limbo of not knowing: between when Jemma had fallen into the sky and when he had received word that she was alive.

He was an engineer. The laws of physics and aerodynamics were second nature to him. He knew fully well how many seconds separated her jump from Ward's because every second after she jumped was a second too long. Fitz had tried to turn off the wheels in his head, but they constantly churned on of their own accord. He was unable to stop the calculations from flashing through his mind: the speed at which she fell, the force her small form would have been subjected to if she had hit the water, the angle her lips had smiled at him before she jumped. They wouldn't leave him alone. And obviously, Ellie understood. Fitz decided then and there that he would never tell her about the grenade incident on the train in Italy.

Ellie sighed. "I just wish she would…I don't know, place more value upon her own life."

"You and me both, sister."

They sat in comfortable silence for a while, watching the sun make its slow descent over the horizon. Right before it disappeared, Fitz's phone rang, startling them both. He held it up to his ear.

"Yes, sir," he said after a few moments, and ended the call. "Agent Coulson," he gestured towards the phone.

"Oh yes, of course," Ellie nodded. "I suppose you've got work to do. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have kept you-"

"He's asking for both of us, actually."

"Me?" she replied incredulously. "What for?"

"He didn't say. But knowing Coulson, it could be anything, really."

Fitz saw a look of fear flash through her eyes. "Oh, no. I hope I haven't done anything wrong."

"Relax, Ellie," he reassured her. "I'm sure it's nothing like that." He stood up and held out his hand to help her up (and to also make sure she didn't fall off of the roof). "Come on. Let's try that team introduction again."

She groaned as he dragged her towards the staircase leading inside. "Do we have to, Leo? I don't think I want to. I can't believe how utterly ridiculous I looked earlier."

Fitz simply laughed and pulled her to his side, draping an arm over her shoulders and planting a kiss on top of her head. "Oh, please. You've already won them over. They were a bit confused, yes, but it was all just a misunderstanding.  _And_  you even managed to get a smile out of Agent May, and trust me, that is a rare feat."

Ellie must not have heard too much about the Cavalry, because she didn't seem very amused. She sighed again as they reached the lift. "And what about Jemma? She hardly looked happy to see me."

"Don't you worry about her. She'll come around. She was just surprised to see you is all."

Ellie was silent, and glancing at her face told Fitz that she didn't quite believe him. He decided to change the subject. "I really missed you."

That got a little smile out of her. "I missed you, too." She turned to face him, and he noticed a mischievous glint in her eyes. Crap. That was never a good sign. "So…have you told her yet?"

He froze, keeping his gaze fixed on the lift door in front of him and fighting to keep his expression neutral. He knew her eyes were boring into the side of his face. "You really need to let that go, El."

Out of the corner of his eye he saw her shaking her head, but when he looked at her she was smirking. "Never."

She laughed, probably because despite all of his attempts, his face had still turned red.

"For a pair of geniuses, you two are bloody idiots," she muttered right before the doors opened on the ground floor.

* * *

"Come on, come on, go faster," she whispered to the machine in front of her, knowing fully well that talking to an inanimate object would hardly increase its productivity. But she was running out of time.

Jemma glanced behind her shoulder for probably the sixth time. Thankfully there had only been a couple agents in the hematology lab when she'd gotten there, most of the recent graduates crammed into the main one for routine safety training. The other agents had looked up briefly when she'd arrived, but had otherwise gone about their work, probably assuming that she had every right to be there. And it wasn't necessarily untrue. The lab had Level 3 restricted access, so she wasn't technically breaking any rules by being there.

She tapped her foot impatiently and fidgeted with the now empty vial of Skye's blood she had in her hand. The readout on the cell cytometer showed that the analysis was only 70% complete. She hadn't wanted to go against Coulson's orders, but her limited resources on the Bus had lead to a dead end with the GH-325. Jemma didn't know why Coulson had been so insistent upon keeping the drug's identity a secret, especially since it had originated from S.H.I.E.L.D. itself and had saved his life. If she could just detect how the drug had worked to regenerate Skye's damaged cells, maybe she would be able to isolate the drug's properties and possibly recreate it. A drug with the kinds of capabilities shown in both Skye and Coulson could have phenomenal implications for the medical world. Why didn't Coulson understand that?

But as the progress bar slowly inched along, Jemma began to doubt herself. She had always trusted the decisions of her superior officers. Surely Coulson had valid reasons for wanting to keep the drug in-house for a little while longer. After all, they had found the sample in a hidden facility Coulson hadn't even known about, and two guards had died in order for their team to retrieve it. Maybe this whole situation was over her head. In a fit of panic, she cancelled the analysis and closed her eyes in disappointment. She'd only brought the one sample into the Hub.

When she looked up, Jemma realized that she was alone. Maybe it was an indication of how much time she had spent with Skye, but her eyes automatically wandered to the door she knew led to the pharmacology storeroom. Entry was restricted to Level 6 agents, but the door had been left propped open. It was against protocol, but she knew many of her colleagues were prone to do so when they needed to get in and out during their research. Besides, superior officers rarely ventured so far into the depths of the Hub's labs. The other agents must have simply forgotten to close it before they'd left for the night. Before she could change her mind, she slipped through the door.

The room was lined with shelves and Jemma was automatically overwhelmed. She had no idea what she was looking for, but decided she would take her chances by starting near the Gs. It was unlikely that the GH-325 would be there in that storeroom, but maybe there would be an earlier prototype. Anything would be better than the nothing she had at the moment. She was halfway along the third shelf when a voice made her jump.

"Agent Simmons?" Jemma winced before turning around to see Agent Sitwell looking at her curiously. Why was  _he_ always the one to catch her breaking the rules?

"Oh! Hello, Agent Sitwell…Jasper…sir. I, er, was just looking for…can I help you?" She tried not to cringe. She hadn't gotten much better at fibbing since their last encounter, and his expression told her that he knew she was spiraling.

"Coulson's looking for you." Jemma wondered why Coulson hadn't just called her when she realized with a start that she didn't have her phone on her. She must've left it on the Bus. "But he's still going through the paperwork for Skye's badge so I volunteered to help him out. I didn't realize you'd be so hard to find, but I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. You  _really_  like going into restricted areas at night, don't you, Agent Simmons?" Jemma opened and closed her mouth, trying to find something to say that wasn't as dreadful as the stuff she had come up with last time. He leaned closer to her and smiled a little. "You're not going to shoot me again, are you?"

Jemma giggled nervously. "Really, I am  _so_  sorry about that. It was a terrible misunderstanding. Honestly, that was so unlike me. I-"

"Okay, okay," he said, cutting her off. "Right now we've got more pressing matters to attend to." She tried not to show the relief on her face. Was she really getting off so easily? "But I have to say, Agent Simmons, that if I catch you doing something like this again, I'm going to have no choice but to strip you of your security clearance. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir," she replied, blushing furiously.

"Okay. Come on, then," he said, leading her out of the room. She tried not to look longingly behind her at the capped vials, undoubtedly holding the answers she so desperately wanted to find.


	3. Chapter 3

_Dr. Eleanor C. Simmons,_

_I am writing to offer my sincerest congratulations on your upcoming graduation from the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy of Science and Technology. Your remarkable achievements in the field of biology have led to phenomenal breakthroughs, and have not gone unnoticed by those of us here at S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters._

_I am aware that you are considering quite a few options to pursue after today's commencement. Due to your outstanding qualifications, I am also contacting you to inform you of a rare opportunity that we would like to present you with. This opportunity would be for you to join a highly classified project, one that has profound implications. Because of the delicate nature of the project, I am currently unable to inform you of any specific details, but I can say that this undertaking has the potential to make the world a better place._

_Your knowledge and expertise, as demonstrated by your academic and scientific excellence, are exactly what we are looking for. This letter is the only one of its kind, as most projects require more experienced agents. Should you accept, however, I know that you will prove to be an extremely beneficial addition to the project. The choice is entirely up to you, but I know I speak for my colleagues when I say that we sincerely hope you choose to work alongside us in this ambitious endeavor._

_Due to the confidentiality of the operation, please destroy this letter after you have read it and refrain from communicating its contents to anyone. Further instructions will arrive soon after your graduation, so continue to proceed with training. I look forward to meeting you soon to hear of your response._

_Again, congratulations._

_Cordially,_

_Jasper Sitwell_

_Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division_

_Field Agent, Level 7_

* * *

May was very close to regretting her decision to tag along with the team. The wait to get Skye's badge and the inevitable paperwork hadn't been that bad, and May had simply been amused when Skye had pleaded with the photographer to retake her I.D. photo, insisting that her hair looked terrible and that she could not carry that around for five years.

No, the worst part had come  _after_  Skye had retrieved her badge, when they had been heading back towards the mission briefing rooms and she had proceeded to flash her new identification to every man wearing a suit. Ward had had to keep her moving along, looking extremely embarrassed and apologizing to passersby. Maddeningly, Coulson hadn't seemed to mind at all. He had simply worn what May liked to call his "proud dad" face, a face he had started to use much more often as of late. But after Skye had stopped the fifth person in order to explain how she was now a real S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Coulson took note of May's impatient glare and grabbed hold of Skye's arm.

"Yes, it's very impressive," he smirked at her. "But we actually have things to do right now. Agent Sitwell's waiting to brief us, and he's probably ready to go home."

May expected Skye to complain about receiving a mission at this hour, but she just nodded, a ridiculous grin plastered on her face. "Yay! A mission," she clapped her hands together. May rolled her eyes.

"We've had missions before," Ward said, looking at Skye in confusion.

Skye sighed loudly, but she was still smiling. "Yeah, but that wasn't when I was a super duper mega awesome agent. Honestly, Ward, get with the program. 'Cause if you don't, I'm probably gonna have to swoop in and save your ass on this mission. With my super agent powers." She smiled with satisfaction before turning around and following Coulson.

Ward threw his hands up in exasperation. "Level 1," he called after her. "You're Level 1." Skye ignored him and he turned to May, probably hoping to exchange some kind of glance of mutual frustration. But May simply smirked before heading in the same direction. She heard him groan behind her before his footsteps fell in line with hers.

Before long they had all assembled in one of the briefing rooms. As they waited for Sitwell to retrieve Simmons from the lab, Coulson gave the rest of them a short rundown of what was going on.

"Over the past couple of months, S.H.I.E.L.D. has been making some changes to their recruitment policy, mostly because of recent developments regarding…" He trailed off, and seemed to decide it would be best to tell them the truth. Good. Because May had actually filed the suggestion right after Peru. "Frankly put, the lack of experience FitzSimmons have had in the field has been a clear indication that we need to better prepare  _all_  of our agents." Coulson grimaced apologetically at Fitz, who had placed his hands on his waist in protest. He opened his mouth, looking like he was about to argue, but then seemed to think better of it and nodded begrudgingly.

"Starting now, all graduates are required to shadow at least one field assignment if they haven't already, regardless of where they'll actually be stationed within the organization." He smiled over at Simmons's sister. "We've been lucky enough to have Ellie assigned to us."

Fitz and Ward immediately began to object at the same time.

"Not bloody likely. Agent Coulson, if our track record has been any indication, it should tell us that Ellie should  _not_ -"

"Whoa, sir, are you sure that's such a good idea? I don't think we're necessarily the best option with our level of-"

Coulson held up his hands and glared at them both. "Quiet. Ellie's going to be with us, and that's final."

Fitz fell silent, but his face had turned white. Ward calmed his voice, continuing. "Sir, I understand. And actually I think this new policy's a great idea." He sighed. "But we already have FitzSimmons, who still haven't been cleared for combat." Ward raised his voice as he saw Fitz getting ready to argue with him. " _And_ we have Skye, who hasn't even taken her field assessment yet."

Skye scoffed angrily. "Ward, I think we've all demonstrated that we're perfectly capable in the field-"

"Oh, really?" Ward turned on her. "And getting shot in the stomach is your definition of 'perfectly capable,' is it?" Skye's eyes hardened in response, and Ward seemed to regret his choice of words. He turned to face the rest of them. "All I'm saying, sir, is that we're probably not the best fit for her." He glanced at Ellie, whose face had fallen at seeing them so vehemently opposed to her joining them. "No offense, Ellie. I'm sure you're very smart, and would probably make a very good addition. To another team."

Ellie gave a tight smile. "That's all right, Agent Ward," she said quietly. "I understand."

Ward sighed. "I just don't want you to get hurt. Being out in the field can be pretty scary, and I don't want to have to worry about ensuring your safety." Ellie simply nodded, but Fitz and Skye were looking at Ward with disgust. And May was also getting dangerously close to smacking him for his patronizing tone.

May had been quietly observing Ellie ever since she had first run up to Fitz in the lobby. She could tell that many people probably immediately compared her with her sister. After all, they were both S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists, they both had the same nose and full lips, and they both were far younger than their peers.

But May was trained in subtleties. Truthfully, she was also wary about Ellie joining them for a mission, but not because of her lack of experience. It was something in her eyes, which echoed a level of maturity unseen in many her age. Ellie looked about 17 years old, but May suspected she was probably more around 21 or 22. She also held herself in a way that was distinctly different from her sister, a way that was almost a mirror reflection of someone else May knew. A red flag waved in the back of May's mind, but she figured it probably wouldn't hurt that much to have Ellie on the Bus. It would be another person to monitor, but May was actually more concerned with Coulson's behavior than she was about the girl.

"It's not up for discussion, Agent Ward," Coulson replied. "She'll be coming on this mission with us. But don't worry. Your presumed superiority has been duly noted."

"Sorry," Skye interjected. "What mission, exactly?"

"We've got another 0-8-4," a voice replied from behind them, and they all turned around to see Agent Sitwell enter the room, along with a very red-faced Simmons. She avoided all of their eyes as she made her way over to Fitz, who was looking at her with alarm. Sitwell must have caught her doing something she wasn't supposed to. Great. Another person May would have to keep an eye on.

"An 0-8-4? Are you sure?" Skye asked. She still looked excited, but May could tell that she was a little more apprehensive this time around, probably considering the fact that the last one they'd dealt with had nearly caused a nuclear explosion. And there was the troubling fact that she herself was an 0-8-4. That might have had something to do with it.

"We're fairly certain. We've been receiving some signals that look a lot like those we saw in Peru and with the Tesseract, but we won't know exactly what we're dealing with until we can examine it further. We're going to need your team to retrieve the object, neutralize it, and bring it back here."

"Neutralize it?" Skye asked, and May could tell she was trying not to appear too alarmed. "We have no idea what it is! How the hell are we supposed to know how to neutralize it?"

"You guys have been in some tight spots before. I'm confident your team will be able to figure it out."

"Uh, excuse me, sir," Ward spoke up. "You said you wanted us to bring the 0-8-4 back  _here_? You don't want us to send it to the Sandbox or the Fridge?"

"The situation is urgent," Sitwell replied. "Just recover the object as soon as possible and bring it here." He briefly glanced at all of them before nodding. "Good luck. Ms. Simmons, if you'll come with me, we'll get you your clearance badge and brief you on our shadowing policy."

There was a small noise of surprise, and May looked over to see Simmons's eyes had widened as she'd noticed her sister's presence in the room. Ellie tried to give her a small smile, but her sister and Fitz had started arguing in fierce whispers. A little deflated, Ellie started to follow Sitwell out of the room.

"Jasper?" Sitwell paused and faced Coulson. "A word?"

When Sitwell nodded, Coulson turned to the rest of the team. "Okay, everyone but May and Ellie can head to the Bus and get ready for takeoff. Wheels up in 30." FitzSimmons continued to bicker quietly as they filed out of the room, Skye following closely behind them. Ward hesitated, obviously feeling like he was also needed there, and it took another glare from Coulson to finally make him leave. As the door shut behind him, May walked up to stand next to Coulson and Ellie.

"You stole my line," she told him drily. Coulson just smirked at her, looking very pleased with himself. Despite his recent alarming behavior, he was still infuriatingly cheesy sometimes.

"What is it, Coulson?" Sitwell asked.

"Are you sure this is the best idea? I mean, the last time my team and I went to go check out an 0-8-4, it was a disaster." He looked over at Ellie. "Please know that this has nothing to do with your abilities." Ellie nodded, but her cheeks were flushed. Coulson turned back to Sitwell. "But frankly, I'm a little wary about bringing another agent on board without combat training."

"Phil," May muttered, leaning towards Coulson's right ear.

He turned his head. "What?"

"I think she can handle herself." Coulson looked at her in confusion, and she tried to wordlessly explain her intuitions. He searched her eyes and seemed to understand, at least a little bit.

"It'll be good for her," Sitwell said. "Having experience in the field is vital for all of our agents, as I'm sure her sister can affirm. Besides, I think you'll find her to be a valuable asset."

Coulson smiled respectfully. "I'm sure, but…we already have two scientists on board."

"None with her expertise."

May and Coulson exchanged a glance and slowly turned their heads towards Ellie at the same time. Sitwell knew they had FitzSimmons, right?

Coulson was thrown for a moment, but found his voice again after a few seconds. "Actually…I've never heard of Ellie Simmons before today, so could you elaborate? What kind of expertise are we talking about here?"

Sitwell looked over at Ellie. "Do you wanna tell them?"

Ellie's eyes darted back and forth between Sitwell and Coulson. "Um…well…I have a PhD in biochemistry…" She spoke slowly, as if she were unsure of what she was supposed to say.

Sitwell smiled at her. "It's okay. You can tell them the truth."

She breathed out a sigh of relief. "Oh. Okay, then. I wasn't sure, because most of what I've been studying has been classified and I haven't been allowed to talk about it with any of the other students-"

"Ellie here just graduated from the SciTech Academy two years early at the top of her class. She's the youngest to pass through since FitzSimmons, actually."

Ellie blushed. "Oh, Leo and Jemma are far smarter than me."

"She's being modest," Sitwell assured them. "Her work in the field of astrobiology has been unparalleled."

"Actually," Ellie held up a finger. "The term exobiology is more precise." May tried not to smirk. She was definitely Simmons's sister.

"I apologize. Her work in  _exobiology_  has surpassed some of our leading scientists here at S.H.I.E.L.D. She's actually slated to helm the astrobiology division at the Sandbox once she completes her training."

Ellie's eyes widened. "Really?"

Sitwell smiled. "Well, we'll see. I'm sure you'll have plenty of operations and projects vying for your attention very soon."

It's something in the way he said it that sent up another red flag in May's head. She had the strong suspicion that Ellie had already been approached. And not necessarily by the good guys.

"Astrobiology?" Coulson asked. "Isn't that the study of-"

"Extraterrestrial life forms, yes," Ellie replied excitedly, a spark in her eyes reminiscent of the sparks that sometimes went off in the Bus lab when FitzSimmons made some scientific discovery or other.

"So…we're talking aliens?" Coulson sounded skeptical, even though everyone in that room knew that he had firsthand experience with aliens.

"Well, in the field we prefer the term extraterrestrial," Ellie corrected him. "But essentially, yes. Before the Battle of New York, we were mostly dealing with conjecture. You know, the search for habitable environments in our solar system and outside of it, any evidence of prebiotic chemistry, the detection of extraterrestrial life, that sort of thing." She was becoming more and more animated as she spoke, even starting to use hand gestures. "And, of course, the Foster Theory opened up a  _world_  of doors for us. I mean an actual  _gateway_  to another dimension? It's extraordinary!" She seemed to realize she was getting off track. "But it wasn't until the Chitauri invasion that the field experienced an enormous upheaval. I mean, it's actually been quite phenomenal." She laughed in amazement and looked at them all expectantly, probably hoping for some sort of similar reaction.

Coulson looked at her curiously. "What exactly have you been doing, Ellie?"

Her smile faltered a little but she cleared her throat. "Well, it all started the day after the Battle in my immunohistochemistry lab. Of course nobody else had been there because the Academy was sort of in chaos but I stupidly went about business as usual because…well, what else was I supposed to do? Fortunately, though, Professor Martell was also there, and we were discussing the events of the day before when she received a phone call from  _Director Fury himself_." Ellie paused for effect, but she was probably a little disappointed that her exciting story wasn't eliciting much of a response from her audience. "It was the strangest thing, but because I had been there, Professor Martell invited me to accompany her to New York to do a ground sweep in order to detect if there were any signs of hazardous materials or biological weapons. We didn't find anything, thankfully, but it got me thinking. These extraterrestrials have a specific biochemistry completely foreign to us here on earth, right? But that also means that they have antibodies we've never seen before, either. What if it were possible to isolate and examine their enzymatic activity and use their DNA in order to develop vaccines…to target  _human_  viruses?"

May saw Coulson freeze and knew what he was thinking. Did Ellie know about what had happened with her sister?

Ellie must have been a little more perceptive than most other SciTech graduates, because she seemed to notice Coulson's reaction as well. "I know what you're thinking, sir," she said quietly. "But the virus from the Chitauri helmet had lay dormant until those firefighters had stumbled upon it. We wouldn't have been able to detect it with our equipment."

The spark had disappeared from her eyes, so May decided to help her out a little bit. "What happened after that?"

Ellie cleared her throat again. "Well, I talked to Dr. Martell and she received permission for me to focus my studies on what we like to call astropathology, and it has been truly groundbreaking. Actually, I've been able to-"

She paused and glanced at Sitwell, who had shaken his head almost imperceptibly. But May had noticed. There was that red flag again.

"Well…actually…all my work has just been theoretical so far."

Ellie wasn't nearly as bad as Simmons at lying, but she still had some work to do. Coulson didn't look very fooled, either, but he probably figured that they had wasted enough time chatting.

He turned to Sitwell. "You think the 0-8-4 we're dealing with could potentially harbor an alien virus? Do you remember what happened the last time?"

"From what we gather, there's no evidence of a virus. But having Ellie there would not be a bad idea. She would've been extremely valuable during that incident with the helmet. At that time, she'd already isolated other alien DNA samples from the Chitauri weapons we picked up on the ground in New York. To be honest, she probably could've saved your team a hell of a lot of trouble."

Ellie was looking at the floor, visibly uncomfortable. May didn't show compassion very often, but she felt a small pang for the poor girl. Ellie had nearly lost her sister to something she would have been able to prevent. Having all the skills in the world meant nothing if you weren't in the right place at the right time, and May understood that all too well.

Coulson hesitated. "Okay," he told Ellie. "But…what I say goes, all right? I've already got enough agents who don't listen to me. I don't need another one. And if we encounter hostiles, I don't want to have to worry about you. So you'll be staying on the Bus for the entirety of the mission, is that understood?"

Ellie nodded emphatically. "Yes. Of course, sir. Thank you, sir. It is an absolute honor to be working with you. And…you won't even know I'm there." She was beaming, obviously ecstatic about joining the team for an assignment. May could tell Coulson was trying not to like her, but he had always been a sucker for that sort of thing. Oh, brother. This was going to be a very interesting mission.

"Okay, Jasper, she's all yours." Coulson stepped forward and shook his hand. "Would you mind bringing her to the Bus when you're finished?"

"Sure thing," he replied. Coulson nodded to May and they both began to head towards the door. "And Phil?" They turned around. "Good luck."

* * *

"There you are," Agent Sitwell said, handing her the shiny new badge.

She was surprised. "Wow, that was fast." She felt a little guilty about jumping the queue in front of many of her classmates, some of who had been waiting nearly all day for their badges.

"We don't want to keep Agent Coulson waiting. Now. You understand your objective, right?"

She nodded. "Look for evidence of the GH-325 on the command station, ensure the 0-8-4 is neutralized properly and brought back here, refrain from engaging in combat." She paused, mentally going through the list in her head. "Have I missed anything?"

"A big one, actually. Don't-"

Ellie could have kicked herself for forgetting. "Tell anyone about the project. Yes, of course, sir."

He smiled at her reassuringly. "I'm sure you'll do great. And if you succeed, we can talk about you joining Project Phoenix as a permanent agent."

She tried not to appear too disappointed. "So…I won't be going to the Sandbox after all then?"

"Ellie, this has the potential to be even bigger than what our agents over at the Sandbox deal with. And your work has allowed our operation to develop in ways we could never have imagined. Within a few years, you could potentially lead the entire project."

Her eyes widened. "But…surely there are more capable agents. Professor Martell, for example, and even Jemma-"

Agent Sitwell shook his head, and began to lead her towards the Hub's plane hangar. "Dr. Martell has turned down our offers. She says she's not interested in leaving the Academy, although SciTech will probably need her to develop the new astropathology courses anyways. And your sister is very smart, but…she's not who we're looking for. She's not the greatest at handling classified information. Or following the rules. You know, she shot me once."

Ellie laughed, assuming that he was referencing some joke she didn't quite understand. She glanced over to see that he was serious. "No, that can't be right. Jemma? You must be mistaken."

"Tell that to the bruise I have on my chest from the dendrotoxin she fired at me."

Ellie shook her head, speechless.

What the hell had S.H.I.E.L.D. done to her sister?

* * *

Ward paused, breathing heavily as the punching bag continued to sway from his last hit. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed movement at the bottom of the cargo ramp. Despite having just nearly reached his physical breaking point, he rushed over to Ellie and grabbed the two suitcases from her hands, ignoring her protests.

"Thank you, Agent Ward," she smiled at him.

He tried to give her a friendly nod in return. "Welcome to the Bus. Come on. I'll show you to your bunk." He began to head up the stairs. When they entered the common area, he glanced behind him to see her looking around in amazement.

"This is, without a doubt, the largest airborne mobile command station I've ever been on. Is all of this really just for the six of you?"

Ward laughed. "Seven now." He walked over to his room and slid open the door with his foot. He had severely power-cleaned the small bunk when he had gotten back to the Bus, but since he was pretty OCD about his things, he hadn't had to do much besides change the sheets and vacuum the floor. He set her suitcases on the inside of the door and stepped out of the room, motioning inside. "Here you are. Sorry it's not much."

She walked past him into the bunk. "It's lovely, Agent Ward. Thank you." He gave her a smile and she glanced over to her right, her eyes focusing on something over the bed. "Who's this?"

Ward ducked his head into the doorway and saw that she was pointing at a small framed photograph on the shelf. "Oh, um, that's my little brother."

Ellie glanced over at him in surprise and quickly looked around the room. "Oh! This isn't…I haven't…is this  _your_  room?"

"Yeah, we only have six bunks on the Bus," he explained. "But it's okay because I don't mind sleeping on the couch for a little while. We have some pretty nice couches."

Ellie's face turned bright pink. "Oh, dear. Oh, I'm so sorry." She picked up one of her suitcases and began to leave the room. "That won't do at all. I couldn't possibly inconvenience you in such a-"

"I insist," he interrupted her, gently taking the case out of her hand and setting it back in the room. "Please. It's the least I can do."

She gave him a knowing look, and shook her head, smiling. "Agent Ward, I'm not upset with you for what you said earlier. You made some very valid points, and I completely understand why you wouldn't want another inexperienced agent on board. Trust me, you don't have to give up your room."

He was relieved that she hadn't been offended, but he still felt a little guilty. "It's really not a big deal."

She eyed him dubiously. "Are you sure?"

" _Yes_ ," he replied emphatically.

"All right, then," she laughed. He was grateful she hadn't tried to argue further. "Thank you again, Agent Ward."

He nodded. "You know, you can drop the Agent if you want. We're not so formal here on the Bus."

"Okay…Ward," she smiled. "Well, this is the real deal, isn't it? Calling each other by our surnames? I feel like an actual S.H.I.E.L.D. agent now."

"Ellie!" Ward turned around to see Skye approaching them. He stepped a little to the side. "I'm…really sorry about that awkward fest earlier. We're really glad you're coming with us."

Ellie smiled. "Oh, thank you, Skye. I'm really glad to be here."

"Wheels are going up," May's voice came over the Bus's comm system. "Lock it or lose it."

Ellie looked at the two of them questioningly, but Skye grabbed her hand and led her over to one of the couches, showing her the safety restraints. Ward sat across from them while they took off. He effectively tuned them out as they gabbed on, acting like they'd known each other for years instead of only a couple hours. When they reached cruising altitude, Skye snapped her fingers at him for attention.

"Hello? Earth to T-1000. Did you hear what I said, Ward?"

Ward shook his head, embarrassed. She sighed in exasperation. "I  _said_  I hope you don't think we're just gonna be sitting around for the next couple hours. You and me. Cargo hold. Let's go."

"Come on, Skye, really? Don't you want to take a break?"

"Absolutely not," she replied, looking at him incredulously. "Ward, the last time we found an 0-8-4, we almost got shot by people who were  _very_ interested in getting it, too. We're going to have to assume we're gonna be dealing with the same thing. And I know you've got your whole superhero complex thing going on, but I've had enough of getting shot to last me a lifetime.  _So_ …let's go."

Ward rested his head in his hands and sighed loudly before standing up. She  _was_  right, much to his annoyance. "Okay, fine. Ellie, make yourself at home. We'll be downstairs if you need us."

"Actually," she said, and they both turned around to see her following them. "Would you mind if I came and watched? It is my first mission, after all, and I'd like to see a little bit of combat before jumping right in there, you know what I mean? That is, if it's no trouble to you."

Ward glanced at Skye to see how she felt, but she just shrugged. "If you wanna see Ward get his ass handed to him, then by all means, come and watch." Ward rolled his eyes but didn't retaliate.

When they got into the hold, Ward could hear FitzSimmons arguing in the lab. Simmons was gesturing pointedly upstairs, and Fitz was shaking his head. They had been fighting about Ellie joining the team ever since they had left the briefing room. Ward didn't really know the whole situation, and he hadn't been able to make out much of what they were saying (mostly because they insisted upon talking over each other all the time), but Simmons obviously didn't want her sister there. Despite being mostly in the dark, Ward had a feeling he understood.

As he and Skye set up the mats, Ellie entered the lab, interrupting the scientists. Ward heard bits and pieces of the following conversation.

"Hey, El. Did you want a tour of the lab?"

"Oh, sure, that'd be great, Leo. But maybe a bit later?"

"Yeah, whenever you want. Just say the word."

"Cool. Jemma, is everything all right?"

Ward heard Simmons sigh. "Yes, Ellie, it's fine. I'm just…not entirely sure that being here is the best thing for you right now."

"Jemma, please don't worry about me. I'm going to be staying on the plane for the entire mission anyway, so really, I'll be fine. And I promise I won't touch anything without your permission."

There was a brief silence. "Oh, all right."

Ward looked over to see Ellie giving Simmons an enthusiastic hug, and Simmons gingerly patted her sister's back for a moment before pulling away. "Thank you, Jemma. I won't let you down." Ellie squealed. "This is going to be so much fun."

"Yeah," Simmons replied sarcastically. "Fun."

"Hey, Ellie," Skye called over. "You're definitely gonna want to watch this." Skye turned to face Ward and held up her hands. He started out slowly, aiming a few blows to her head, and she easily deflected them. Maybe it was because of his audience, but Ward decided to step it up a notch. He would have to be careful, because Simmons was watching, but he didn't have to let her win without a decent fight.

After a couple minutes, Skye tried going on the offense. Her technique was sloppy, and she failed in her attempts to get at his throat or head. She was trying to take him down again.

"Um, excuse me. Skye?" Both of them turned in confusion to see Ellie looking at them. "Sorry. I just…well, I couldn't help noticing that you were aiming upwards. He's much taller than you, so you'd probably want to…Actually, it'd probably be easier if I just showed you. Would…that be all right?" She glanced questioningly between them.

Skye looked as surprised as Ward felt, but she stepped aside. "Be my guest."

Ward's heart sped up a little faster. This girl was small, smaller than Skye. She looked like she would break if he so much as nudged her too hard. He decided he wouldn't offer up much resistance. After all, she hardly needed the kind of training an agent like Skye needed.

Ellie stood in front of him for a few seconds, her hand on her chin, examining him. He felt slightly self-conscious. Was she sizing him up?

"Okay. Are you ready?" she asked.

Ward almost laughed out loud. "Go ahead."

There was a blur of motion, and before Ward knew it, he felt his airway constrict as Ellie wrapped her arms around his waist. He was so startled that he barely registered his feet being knocked out from underneath him. For the second time that day, Ward found himself pinned on the ground.


	4. Chapter 4

They all stood there in stunned silence, staring at Ellie. Well, except for Ward, who was staring up at her from the ground with an expression of mixed awe and fear.

Jemma had always trusted her vision, but the anomaly before her was undoubtedly the most unbelievable thing she had ever seen. Who the hell was this girl? She looked like her sister. She had the same face, the same hair, the same petite form as Ellie. But the girl in front of her couldn't be her sister because her sister had never thrown anyone in her life, let alone a 6'3" S.H.I.E.L.D. specialist.

Jemma hadn't seen Ellie since the holidays, and thinking back she didn't remember noticing anything strange about her. She supposed Ellie's arms had had a little more tone to them, but she was still so thin that it had hardly made a difference. And surely she would have mentioned to Mum and Dad that she had suddenly acquired the ability to bring Operations specialists to the ground. Ellie talked about  _everything_. Why hadn't Jemma known about this?

She had taken down Ward in a matter of seconds.  _Ward_. What on earth was going on?

Jemma glanced over at Fitz, expecting to see the same stunned bewilderment on his face, but he was smirking. Actually smirking. So he'd known about Ellie's new combat skills and hadn't thought to mention it? Jemma narrowed her eyes in his direction. She was going to kill him later. Very, very slowly.

"Holy…crap," Jemma heard Skye exclaim, and turned back to the strange spectacle before her.

"Oh! Are you all right? I hope I didn't hurt you." Ellie straightened her blouse and offered a hand to help Ward.

Ward shook his head, indicating that he didn't need her assistance, and slowly stood up. "I'm fine. Really, I'm fine." He was smiling, trying to pretend like he had meant for that to happen, but Jemma could tell that he was brutally embarrassed. "Those were, uh…that was…good. That was good. Very impressive."

She beamed up at him, obviously pleased with herself.

"Ellie…" Jemma said slowly. When Ellie met her eyes, she took a couple seconds to find her words. "Where on earth did you learn to do that?"

Ellie laughed. "At the Academy, of course." Jemma must have looked utterly baffled because a look of realization dawned on Ellie's face. "Oh, that's right! Silly me. You wouldn't have known about that. A group of us formed after it was rumored that you two had been sent into the field," she said, motioning between Jemma and Fitz. "Because if  _you_  were going out there,  _we_  needed to prepare ourselves for that possibility as well. It started out quite small, but after a while the numbers started growing and growing, and now it's a regular thing we've been doing in the-" She paused. "Um, well…in a  _covert_  location…at the  _Academy_." Ellie was raising her eyebrows pointedly, apparently hoping that Jemma would catch on.

Jemma rolled her eyes, but Fitz spoke up before she did. "Ward and Skye know about the Boiler Room, Ellie."

Ellie looked crestfallen. "Oh! But…it's supposed to be a secret."

"Don't worry," Ward smiled at her. "Your secret's safe with us."

"Wait," Skye interjected. "The Boiler Room? You went to SciTech?"

Ellie nodded.

"And you  _just_ graduated?"

"Yes."

Skye shook her head. "Then how come we didn't see you when we came and visited during that whole ice storm fiasco?"

Ellie gave a small groan. "I heard about that. I was  _so_  disappointed. I was on the other side of the country doing research for my independent project with Professor Martell. I wanted to come back for Leo and Jemma's lecture, but the samples we were dealing with couldn't wait."

"I wouldn't be totally disappointed," Skye reassured her. "You only missed them talking for, like, five minutes before they were interrupted by Mr. Freeze. And then, of course, you dodged Winter Storm Donnie."

Ellie didn't look very relieved. "I know, I can't believe I missed  _everything_."

While they had been talking, Jemma's vision went out of focus as she tried to process what Ellie had said. Something was off. "Ellie, what were you doing on the other side of the country?"

Ellie smiled at her, but Jemma could see a flash of something like fear in her eyes. "My independent project, of course."

Jemma shook her head. "SciTech has a plethora of resources to offer its students, plenty more than any of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s bases over on the west coast."

"Oh, um, well, we weren't at any of the major bases."

"Where were you, then?"

Ellie laughed nervously. "You know, I actually have no idea. I was told it was a classified location, and, you know, being a student, I was only told what I needed to know in order to complete my research." It seemed like Ellie was telling the truth, but Jemma knew her well enough to know that Ellie had a masterful way of lying without actually lying. She was definitely hiding something. Jemma opened her mouth to press further, but Coulson's voice came over the comms.

"Team meeting in five in the conference room."

Ellie's face lit up and she avoided Jemma's gaze. "Oh! A team meeting. This is so exciting." Jemma sighed as Ellie led the group up the steps, vowing to herself that she would get to the bottom of what her sister was keeping from her.

* * *

"Skye, what've you got?"

They were all gathered around the Holocom in the conference room, looking at the images that flashed on the screen. Fitz made a point to stand in between Jemma and Ellie to keep Jemma from interrogating her sister any further. He wanted to get this mission over with. As much as he loved Ellie, he really didn't feel comfortable with her being there in the field. Jemma already gave him enough to worry about.

"All right, from what Sitwell gave us, the signals seem to be coming from, get this, Denver International Airport." Skye looked at them expectantly, obviously hoping for some kind of reaction. Fitz didn't really know what was so special about an airport, and looking around the room, no one else did either.

"At least I won't have trouble finding somewhere to park," May quipped.

Skye had a look of incredulity on her face. "Oh, come on, guys. Seriously? None of you know about the Denver airport?"

"Why don't you fill us in?" Coulson replied, looking slightly annoyed.

Skye shook her head, but she seemed excited to share whatever info she had. "Okay, you guys are going to flip." She pulled up a few web pages on the screen. "The airport was commissioned in 1989 with a budget of a little under two billion dollars. It wasn't finished until '95,  _two years_ later than the projected timetable, at a cost of almost  _five billion_."

"Okay," Coulson said confusedly. "So they went a little over budget. What's the big deal?"

Skye sighed in irritation. "Because no one knows where the money came from. The project was privately funded by something called the New World Airport Commission. At least, that's what it says on all the documents filed during the construction. But here's the kicker. The New World Airport Commission? It doesn't exist."

Ward groaned. "Skye, this isn't another conspiracy theory, is it? We're on a  _mission_."

Skye folded her arms. "Ward, you haven't even heard the half of it. And we're dealing with an 0-8-4 here. Who knows what that means? I think we all need to at least open our minds a little bit."

"Skye, is it really relevant?" Coulson asked.

She rolled her eyes and swiped something on the table, bringing up a couple diagrams onto the screen. " _Yes_. They built the airport in the early 90s, right? But the thing is, Denver already had an airport. They didn't need another one, let alone one that takes up over fifty square miles."

Fitz looked at the diagram, and even though he hated to admit it, he found his interest had piqued. Who would need that much acreage? And in Denver, no less.

"The weird size isn't the only thing. There's also a bunch of creepy apocalyptic artwork all over the place, which is what originally inspired a lot of people to post their theories online." A few disturbing murals and statues flashed in front of their eyes as Skye flipped through them. "But when you dig deeper, you find that there are actually five buildings in the original blueprints that are unaccounted for. It turns out they were actually built  _under_  the airport runways, along with a tunnel system. Now, the airport authorities have released statements saying the underground base is used for storage, but, I mean, come on. No airport needs  _that_  much storage."

"What do you think is actually down there?" Coulson asked skeptically.

Skye shrugged. "Beats me. But there are all kinds of theories out there. Some say the buildings underground were part of a bunker that had already been there, built right after World War II by Nazi sympathizers to hide war criminals, and that the airport was created to cover it up. Some say it's been reopened by neo-Nazis, who've been using the base to develop some sort of biological warfare. But whatever shady stuff is happening down there, there's one thing that can't be disputed. The place is built to withstand a nuclear explosion."

There was a heavy pause in the room as everyone absorbed Skye's words. It sure sounded like a place to find an 0-8-4.

"I'll get a hold of airport security, see if they can help us out. If it really is in an underground bunker, and we're just now getting the signals, something must have woken it up." Coulson glanced around the room. "We're going to have to assume this will be a combat op. Ward and May, you'll be coming with me. Fitz, if we can get you in there, do you think the D.W.A.R.F.s could help us figure out what the 0-8-4 is?"

Fitz nodded. "If it's anything like the one we found in Peru, though, it'd probably be best if we brought a containment case. Especially if we have to get out of there fast."

"Okay, you'll be in charge of that then. Can you also get the Night-Night guns ready for us?"

"Well, they're ICERs now…" He trailed off as Coulson glared at him. "But yes, sir."

"Wait," Ellie spoke up. As they all turned to look at her, she smiled apologetically, but her face was filled with alarm. "Sorry. It's just…sir, did you say  _Leo_  was going to be going in with you?"

Fitz nudged her arm with his. "Don't worry, El. I've gone in loads of times. They give me a bulletproof vest and everything." She didn't laugh, the fear still etched plainly on her face. He heard Jemma scoff behind him and avoided looking over at her, knowing he would see the same fear in her eyes. Why did everyone think he was utterly incapable of going into the field?

"We'll keep an eye on him," Coulson assured her. Ellie hesitated before nodding, but Fitz could tell she still wasn't crazy about the idea of him rushing into potential danger.

"Simmons, you'll stay here on the Bus with your sister and monitor the comms."

Fitz turned to see that Jemma was less than thrilled by her impending task, but she nodded. "Yes, sir," she said quietly.

"Uh, Coulson?" Skye interjected.

"Yeah?"

"What about me?"

"We'll also have you on the comms. You can guide us through the airport and give us intel in real time. Airport security detail, traffic control info, that kind of thing."

Skye shook her head. "You already have Simmons on the comms, and intel isn't going to mean squat if you run into hostiles." She took a breath. "I want to go with you."

Almost everyone in the room spoke up at once.

"Absolutely not. Your condition-"

"No way. Sir, she's hardly had enough combat training-"

"Agent Coulson, please see reason-"

Coulson held his hands up in a time-out signal. They all fell silent. Agent May hadn't said anything, but she was looking at Coulson expectantly, seemingly curious as to how he was going to respond.

"Skye, I'm not entirely sure that's such a great idea."

"Oh, come on, A.C.  _Please_?" she whined. "I just got my badge. I can do it, I swear."

There was a long pause as Skye and Coulson stared each other down. Skye was in full puppy-dog face mode, but Coulson must have had a much stronger will than Fitz because he took about ten seconds longer than Fitz usually did to give in. Coulson sighed and Skye broke into a huge smile.

"You listen to  _every word_ I say, do you understand me?" She nodded enthusiastically, but Coulson shook his head. "No. I mean it, Skye. You'll stay right by us the whole time. No going off on your own. No taking matters into your own hands. I am your commanding officer, and as an official S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, you're expected to follow orders now. Can I trust you to do that?"

Skye grew serious, but a smile still played in her eyes. "Yes, sir."

Coulson sighed again. "Fine. May, what's our ETA?"

May inspected her tablet. "I can get us on the ground in 45."

"Okay. Everyone get suited up. I want to get this 0-8-4 taken care of as quickly as possible." He nodded at them all before exiting the room, May behind him.

Fitz noticed Ward turning towards Skye, probably to make some sort of objection about her being in the field, but Jemma actually spoke first.

"Skye, please be reasonable. Think about what you're doing. Going into the field so soon after what happened to you is reckless." Fitz didn't even need to look at Jemma to know that she was severely distressed. It was a force of habit whenever one of them was upset, but Fitz automatically moved closer to her so that their arms were barely touching. Her eyes darted over to him briefly, which he knew was her way of thanking him.

"Simmons, it's time," Skye replied. "I can't hide here on the Bus forever. I need to get out there again."

"She's right," Ward said, and Fitz looked over at him in surprise. He would've thought that of all people, Ward would be the one most opposed to Skye joining them.

Skye also looked a little shocked, but she gave Ward a small smile. "Thanks, Ward."

Ward nodded to her in reply. But Jemma wasn't ready to give in.

"Skye, that's all very well, but why  _now_? Can't you just wait a little while longer?"

"Simmons," Ward turned to face her. "She's ready. Every field agent has a moment when they have to leave the nest and learn to fly on their own. If we keep holding her back, she'll never be able to even reach the sky." He winced as they all looked at him with hardly concealed amusement.

"Did…you just make a pun, Ward?" Skye asked in astonishment. Her face was filled with mischievous glee.

Fitz cringed. "Jeez, that was bloody awful." He slapped Ward on the back. "Probably best if you didn't try that again, mate."

Ward glared at him before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. "Look. I'm not crazy about the idea of Skye going in, either. But I'm her S.O. And whether I like it or not, she's ready."

Jemma didn't look very swayed, but she didn't offer up further argument. Skye took her silence as encouragement because she hit Ward playfully on the shoulder.

"Come on, boss. Let's go suit up."

Ward rolled his eyes and followed her out into the common area. Fitz was going to join them when he felt a hand on his arm, and turned to see Ellie still looking at him with concern.

"Ellie, relax. We'll be in out of there before you know it. Everything will be fine."

"You know I'm going to hold you to that, right?"

He smiled at her. "I'd be disappointed if you didn't."

Ellie laughed a little, but she still looked worried. He saw her eyes wander behind him and she gave his arm a squeeze before leaving the room, the door closing softly behind her.

Fitz sighed before turning around to face Jemma. She simply looked at him for a few moments before wordlessly stepping forward and wrapping her arms around his neck. He hugged her back and rested his chin on her shoulder, taking comfort in the pulse he felt reverberating through her body.

They stood there for a few moments, not saying anything. They didn't have to. Fitz could hear Jemma's anxiety as clear as a bell in his head. No matter how many times he went out into the field, he didn't think she'd ever be fully okay with him in potential danger. She didn't protest out loud anymore, but Fitz knew. He always knew.

"Be safe," she whispered before pulling away, leaving him alone in the conference room with his thoughts.

* * *

"Mr. Reid, I'm Agent Coulson with S.H.I.E.L.D. We spoke on the phone earlier." Coulson stepped forward to shake hands with the Denver airport manager.

"Yes, of course. I rushed over as soon as I could. How can I help you?"

Coulson looked over at Skye and nodded. She walked up to the manager and showed him the diagrams she had on her phone. "We've been sent to collect something that could be super dangerous if it's allowed to be anywhere near large groups of people. Our signals are coming from somewhere over here," she gestured towards the east side of the map. "We think it might be in the underground bunker beneath the airport."

She glanced up at the manager's face and nearly took a step back. His piercing blue eyes were so startling that Skye was sure he had to be wearing contacts. Must be a mid-life crisis or something.

"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about. All that's underneath the airport is a storage facility."

Skye fought the urge to roll her eyes, and was grateful when Coulson spoke up. "We're well aware of what the official airport statements have said, but we'd still appreciate it if you could let us take a look around. As I said earlier, it's a matter of grave importance."

The manager folded his arms. "And I suppose if I refuse, you have ways of making me cooperate, right?"

Coulson's face remained unchanged, fixed in that terrifyingly calm smile. "I think it'd be best for everyone if it didn't get to that point, don't you, Mr. Reid?"

There was a pause as they all looked at him expectantly. He seemed to think it over before making a decision. "I guess I can bring you down there for a few minutes. But I doubt you'll find anything."

He led them through a maze of hallways and stairwells that twisted and turned so many times, Skye lost track of where they were going. As they descended below the airport, Skye felt the first prick of uneasiness. The last 0-8-4 they'd dealt with had had the potential to create a nuclear explosion. And they were heading into a confined space below the ground? That could hardly be a good idea. And then there was the fact that she herself was also an 0-8-4. What if her 0-8-4ness made other 0-8-4s go wonky? No. That was stupid. Skye focused on taking deep breaths. This was no time to get paranoid.

"Simmons?" Coulson asked. "Are we getting closer?"

There was silence as they waited for Simmons's voice to come through the comms.

"Damn," he said. "We must be too far belowground again."

"We've  _really_  gotta invest in some better comms," Skye muttered.

They reached a big metal door that had a sign reading "Restricted Access." The manager paused to ensure everyone had followed him. "This is the east entrance, so if whatever you're looking for is even down here, it'll probably be somewhere behind this door."

"Thank you, Mr. Reid. Would you do the honors?" Coulson pointed to the door. Reid nodded and turned around, inserting a key into the lock and pushing the door open. The room beyond was dim, and Skye couldn't really make out anything. The manager motioned inside. "Have at it."

Coulson turned to look behind him. "Okay. I'll go in first. Ward, you go on my six. Fitz and Skye, you stay in the middle, and May will bring up the rear." He glanced at each one of them to make sure they all understood their tasks. After a moment, he nodded and slowly entered the room.

The light from Coulson's flashlight showed a small cement block. The room was completely bare, but an open doorway beyond gave a glimpse of a larger space ahead.

"Well, this isn't so bad," Skye said, and immediately closed her mouth as she heard the sound of a door slamming behind her. They all whirled around. The manager was gone, the closed metal door in his place. May quickly walked up and tried the handle. She looked at the rest of them and shook her head.

"Damn it," Coulson whispered. "Okay, we'll deal with him later. Right now we need to concentrate on getting the 0-8-4. Fitz, stay here and call out if anyone comes through the door. We'll go into the next room and see if we find anything. But we have to assume we're gonna meet a little resistance. So only come with the D.W.A.R.F.s when I give the all-clear. Got it?"

Fitz nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Okay. Come on."

They inched forward toward the doorway. Skye held her Night-Night gun up near her face, trying not to shake. It was so quiet she could hear her heart pounding. What if they were walking into an ambush? The room beyond was nearly pitch-black, but when Coulson turned his flashlight off, she noticed a blue glow coming from the corner of the room.

Before she make out the source of the glow, she heard a click from somewhere off to her left that made her blood run cold. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light, she slowly turned to see that Ward, Coulson, and May had arranged themselves in a triangle around her.

"I count nine," May whispered almost imperceptibly.

"Copy that," Coulson replied just as quietly.

"The Trifecta Protocol, sir?" Ward asked.

Skye turned to see Coulson nodding. "The Trifecta Protocol." She whipped her head around. All three of them had smiles on their face. She was about to ask what the hell the Trifecta Protocol was when all of a sudden she was surrounded by a blur of motion. She heard a few blows, the distinct whoosh of a Night-Night gun being fired, and a loud crack that sounded an awful lot like bones breaking. Before she knew it, the floor was covered with the bodies of five men.

As her team whirled around her, Skye leaned forward to examine one of the unconscious hostiles. He was wearing what appeared to be an airport security uniform. She glanced at the other assailants. They were all airport security guards.

Something hit her hand and she yelped in surprise, her Night-Night gun knocked out of her grasp. She turned around to see one of the guards standing in front of her, cracking his knuckles. She looked to her sides for help, but May, Coulson, and Ward were all busy fighting the other attackers. She would have to get out of this one on her own.

The guard was taller than Ward, so there was no way she'd be able to twist his arm like she had done earlier. But maybe she could try the technique Ellie had shown her.

Before she could think about it too much, Skye rushed forward and wrapped her arms around his waist, hoping she would surprise him enough to take him down. She felt a tremor through her arms and realized the guard was laughing at her. She moved around to his side and tried to knock his legs out from under him, but he must have realized what she was doing because he lunged at the last second and caught her foot with his in mid-swing.

A searing pain shot up her leg and she stepped backwards, trying not to cry out. She didn't fall, but turned to face the guard again, who was now pointing a gun at her head.

Skye stared at the barrel, frozen. The next few seconds were critical. She tried to remember her training. She just had to pretend it was Ward making her go through the drill again. But all she saw was Quinn pointing the gun at her. The sounds around her faded, the two bangs that had nearly sent her to her death resounding in her head.

In the end, it was thinking of Quinn's stupid face that gave Skye the burst of adrenaline she needed. She would do anything to wipe that look of satisfaction off the face of the planet. She took a deep breath and dodged out of the line of fire, getting under the guard's arm. She successfully took the gun out of his hands and whirled around, turning it on him.

She expected him to raise up his hands in surrender, but he simply smiled at her.

"What are you gonna do, little girl? Shoot me?" He stepped forward and she almost gasped in surprise. His eyes were shockingly blue, the same blue she had seen in the eyes of the airport manager. Something weird was definitely going on. She panicked, her finger on the trigger. The pain in her ankle was almost too much for her to handle, but she couldn't fail. Not again.

"I might show you mercy," she said, trying to act like she had the upper hand. (Well, technically, she did.) "But only if you surrender now."

He laughed at her again. Before she could process his movements, he stepped forward and wrapped one hand around her neck. The gun shook in her grasp as he continued to choke her. Black spots danced in front of her eyes, and she felt like she was going to pass out when all of a sudden she heard the sound of a gunshot.

Skye took in a huge gulp of air as the grip on her neck relaxed. The guard in front of her stared at her face in confusion and then looked down at his chest. Her eyes followed his to the pool of blood that had started to form on his shirt. Skye looked down at the gun in horror. Her hands began to shake, and as the gun clattered to the floor, she clapped a hand over her mouth.

The guard's eyes went out of focus and he began to sway. Skye realized almost too late what was about to happen. As he began to fall forward on top of her, she sidestepped out of the way and screamed, the searing pain in her ankle coming back at full force. She felt herself collapsing, but before she hit the ground, strong arms caught her and gently lowered her to the floor.

"Skye," Ward looked at her in alarm. "Are you okay?"

She looked up at him, eyes still widened in horror, and tried to speak, but no words would come out. The alarm on his face grew and she saw him glance down at her leg.

"Ward!" she heard Coulson shout as he rushed over to them. "Skye! What happened?" She turned her head to see him and May looking at her with concern. She glanced around the room, trying to see if there were any more guards, but her vision was blurred for some reason.

"She's twisted her ankle," Ward replied. "I don't know, it might be a break. I'll take her back to the Bus and have Simmons look at it."

"Okay. Here. Take this for the lock." Skye couldn't see what Coulson had handed Ward, but she assumed it was one of those handy devices he liked to carry around that magically exploded doors.

With one hand still on her back, Ward slid his other arm under Skye's legs and lifted her off the ground. Skye tried to protest, telling him that she could walk just fine on her own. She didn't want to be carried out of her first real mission like some kind of child. As Ward walked towards the door, he glanced down at her.

"Skye, I can't understand what you're saying."

Her vision was still blurred, and when she brought a shaking hand to her face, she realized that she was crying. She raised her voice, trying to tell him to put her down. But the words that were pouring out of her mouth were different from the ones that were going through her head. "I shot him. I shot him. I shot him." She sounded hysterical, but she couldn't stop.

Ward pulled her closer to him and she buried her face in his shirt. Her ankle felt like it was on fire, and her whole body threatened to succumb to the pain. The last thing she heard before she passed out was Ward's voice next to her head.

"Shh, Skye," he murmured. "It's okay. It's going to be okay."

* * *

"Fitz, get in here!" Coulson shouted. May looked over at him in alarm. There was something in his voice that was off. Maybe it was seeing Skye hurt again. May had to admit that seeing her collapsed in Ward's arms had made her own stomach drop.

Fitz rushed in and stopped in his tracks. "What the bloody hell happened in here? And what about Skye?" He gestured behind him.

"She'll be fine. Ward's taking her back to the Bus."

Fitz didn't look very convinced, but he nodded. "What've we got, sir?"

"You tell me," Coulson replied, pointing behind him to the object glowing in the corner of the room.

"All right, everyone stay back here until the D.W.A.R.F.s give us some kind of idea of what we're dealing with." Fitz quickly opened the case containing the bots and sent them to work with his tablet.

"Okay…" Fitz said slowly, examining the data coming through. "Yep. Just as we suspected. Sleepy's reading the same radionuclides we found in Peru. It has a functioning power source, and it also seems to be fuelled by Tesseract technology, but it's not nearly as lethal as the other one. Sir, I don't think the photon emissions coming out of it are too bad. We'll probably be able to get it to the Hub without much trouble. But we should still be careful around it."

"Okay. Let's get it and get out of here. I don't like this place."

Fitz retrieved the D.W.A.R.F.s and stored them, grabbing the other large case he had brought with to contain the 0-8-4. He slowly walked towards the glowing object, with May and Coulson following closely behind him.

When they were only a few feet in front of it, May saw Coulson freeze out of the corner of her eye. She glanced over to see him staring at the blue stone with wide eyes.

"Phil?" she asked. He didn't seem to hear her.

"Phil!"

"Don't touch it!" he shouted hysterically, and Fitz turned around in confusion. He had the containment case open, and he had put heavy handling gloves on for safety.

"What is it, sir?"

Coulson remained silent, his eyes fixed on the 0-8-4. May looked between the object and Coulson, and something clicked in her head. The weird blue eyes of all the guards. The strange location. Coulson's shocked reaction to seeing the stone.

May felt dread settle in her bones, the glow instilling a new sense of fear within her. She knew that Coulson had seen that stone before. Right before he died.

In the Chitauri scepter Loki had used to stab him in the heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Denver Airport conspiracy theory Skye references in this chapter is based on a real conspiracy theory. If you would like to know more, please let me know, and I will be happy to send you some of the sources I used.
> 
> As always, thank you so much for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

"Sir?" Fitz repeated, looking up at Coulson. Something was wrong. His eyes were fixed on the blue gem, widened in shock. Fitz remembered seeing a similar look on his face back at the Guest House, when Coulson had gone into some kind of trance after finding the drug for Skye.

Fitz shared a concerned glance with May. They couldn't afford for Coulson to shut down right now.

"The 0-8-4, Phil," May began softly. "Is it-"

"From Loki's scepter?" Coulson finished, and even though his eyes were still trained on the stone, Fitz was relieved that he seemed to be coming back to them. "I don't know, Melinda," he murmured, and his voice came the closest to cracking that Fitz had ever heard. "It sure looks like it."

Fitz turned back towards the object, confused. "The Chitauri?" he asked in amazement. "Then it-"

"Has the ability to bend the will of even the strongest S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, yes," Coulson replied. "I've seen it happen. Lorelei is nothing compared to this. This destroyed…" He paused, and briefly closed his eyes. "Nearly everything."

Fitz tried not to back away from the stone that was right in front of him. This seemingly harmless gem had brought death and destruction at an unprecedented level, almost obliterating one of the largest cities in the world and tearing through the heart of Coulson himself. It was hard to believe that something so small could hold so much power.

"Are you sure it's the same thing, Phil? I thought S.H.I.E.L.D. confiscated Loki's weapon after the Battle. Do you think someone stole it? Or is there another one?"

"I don't know, May," Coulson shook his head. "But you saw those guards. Someone's been playing around with it here. The manager was in on it, but we don't know how deep the rabbit hole goes. That  _thing_ ," he pointed at the 0-8-4, "corrupts the mind. And I sure as hell don't want it on my plane."

Fitz shared another glance with May before venturing forward. "Sir," he said quietly. "We have our orders. We're to bring the object back to the Hub."

There was a long pause as he waited for Coulson's response.

"Phil, we can keep it in the Cage. No one has to go near it."

Fitz saw Coulson's gaze finally break away from the stone to look over at May. There was so much pain in his expression and so many unspoken words flying between them that Fitz felt like he was intruding on a private moment. He fiddled with the gloves in his hands until they silently reached an agreement.

"Fine," Coulson finally said after a sigh. "Fitz, put it in the containment case, and make sure you don't touch it directly. We don't need our engineer going over to the dark side again."

Even though Fitz's heart sped faster at the prospect of handling such a dangerous object, he felt slightly comforted that Coulson was present enough to make lame jokes. He tried not to look directly at the stone as he carefully placed it in the case, lest it somehow take hold of his brainpower that way. If the incident with Lorelei had taught him anything, it was that he very much liked to be in control of his own mind.

They gingerly made their way around the unconscious bodies littering the floor. When they reached the big metal door, Fitz noticed the lock had been blasted off. Outside in the hallway, the airport manager was on the ground, blinking confusedly and rubbing his head. Ward must have knocked him out when he left with Skye. Even though Fitz would never have admitted it in a million years, he was secretly impressed. Carrying the girl back to safety  _and_  knocking out an assailant at the same time? Show off.

As the manager's eyes fell on the three of them, he lifted up a hand to stop them. Without hesitating, Coulson walked up to him and hit the side of his head with the ICER, effectively knocking him out again.

Stowing his weapon, Coulson straightened his suit jacket and nodded at the unconscious manager. "Thank you for your cooperation."

* * *

Ward had a pretty good memory, but even he had a little trouble recalling the way back to the Bus. Thankfully Skye was pretty light, so he could concentrate on getting out of there quickly without being distracted by the weight. But every so often he worriedly glanced down at her still face and felt his heart constrict as he thought about what she'd had to do. He cursed himself for not paying more attention to her. She had been fine, and she would be fine, physically, but Ward still remembered the first time he had killed someone. It changes something in an agent.

When he finally reached the cargo ramp of the Bus, Skye stirred in his arms.

"Ward?" she whispered confusedly, trying to look around.

"Hey, you're okay," he said softly. "We're on the Bus."

As he quickly made his way into the lab, he noticed there was no sign of Simmons or her sister. They must have been upstairs in the conference room. He carefully set Skye down in one of the lab's swivel chairs.

"No, Ward, I can't sit here," Skye said groggily.

Ward shook his head. "What? Why?"

"This is  _Fitz's seat_ ," she whispered conspiratorially. "He's very particular about his seat."

Ward tried not to roll his eyes, with little success. "Well, one, Fitz isn't here," he said as he gently lifted her right ankle up onto the desk, positioning the chair so that it wouldn't roll away. "And two…uh…I don't care."

Skye laughed. "Okay, then. But you should know that if the choice comes between taking the blame and ratting you out, you will  _definitely_  be the one facing Fitz's wrath." Ward was relieved that she was mentally and emotionally stable enough to make jokes, but when he looked at her, he noticed a pain in her eyes that cracked something deep inside of him. He knew that the pain would fade with time, but it would always be there.

"I'm terrified," he said sarcastically. "Okay, I'm gonna go find Simmons. Stay here, okay?"

She snorted. "No, Ward, I'm gonna go do some cartwheels out on the runway."

He rolled his eyes again and turned around, racing up the steps two at a time. He could hear Simmons and Ellie arguing in the conference room.

"Maybe you could try the comms again. Surely they've retrieved the 0-8-4 by now-"

"Ellie, for the last time, I've  _been_  trying and there's nothing. We have to be patient-"

"Simmons," Ward said as he ducked in the doorway.

Both of their heads whipped toward him at the same time. "Yes?" they replied in unison.

Oh, yeah.

"Uh…Jem-Jemma," Ward corrected, and inwardly cringed. Her name felt foreign on his tongue, and by the small smile playing on her lips, he could tell she wanted to make fun of him for it. But as she took in his appearance, her face fell.

"Ward, what happened?" She searched his eyes, and he saw something harden in her expression. "Who is it?"

He didn't want to tell her. But if he didn't say anything, she would assume the worst. He tried to choose his words carefully.

"It's…Skye," he said hesitantly. "But-"

Ward had never seen Simmons so angry. "I bloody knew it," she hissed as she bolted past him. He raced after her down the steps.

"Simmons, she's fine. She just hurt her ankle-"

But Simmons wasn't having it. "Nobody  _ever_  listens to what I say. I tried to tell you all she wasn't ready to go into the field yet, but did you care? Absolutely not. And now look what's happened." She was livid, but Ward could hear tears in her voice.

"Skye," she said worriedly as she entered the lab.

Skye gave Ward a look of accusation. "God, Ward, you didn't freak her out, did you? She'll never let me go out again. Simmons, I'm totally fine. I just twisted my ankle."

"Oh, you poor thing." Ward turned around to see that Ellie had followed them. "What happened?"

As Simmons gingerly removed Skye's shoe to better examine her ankle, Ward gave them a very watered-down version of what had actually happened in the bunker.

Ellie's face went white. "You actually ran into hostiles?"

"Yeah," he replied. "But we took care of it. It was weird. They seemed to be guarding the 0-8-4."

Simmons's hands stilled. She glanced quickly around the room before her gaze fell on Ward. "Where are the others?" she said slowly. The look in her eyes was one he had grown accustomed to, a look of fear she reserved for only one person.

"Fitz is fine. They're getting the 0-8-4 and bringing it here right now."

Her shoulders relaxed slightly, but Ward still noticed tension in her movements. She turned back to Skye's ankle.

"Okay, let me know if this hurts." She gently tilted Skye's toes backward. When Skye shook her head, Simmons nodded and inched her foot over to the right. Ward could tell Skye was trying not to show too much pain, but a hiss still escaped through her teeth.

Ward heard a small gasp and felt a hand on his arm. He looked over to see Ellie had clapped her other hand over her mouth and was looking at Skye with concern. Her eyes darted over to Ward and her face turned pink as she seemed to realize what had happened. "Sorry," she whispered before removing her hand from his arm.

Skye tried to laugh through the pain, but her face was scrunched up. " _Hey_ , I could probably use some of that miracle drug again right about now."

"Miracle drug?"

Skye's eyes flew open in surprise. She must have forgotten that Ellie was in the room.

She waved her hand dismissively. "Just an expression."

Ellie looked slightly confused, but shook her head. "Jemma, where do you keep the paracetamol?"

Simmons was still inspecting Skye's ankle. "It's up in the kitchen cupboard," she replied without looking up. "Ward, could you show her, please?"

"Yeah, sure thing," he nodded. He really didn't want to be on Simmons's bad side, so he waited until he and Ellie had reached the top of the stairs before murmuring, "Para-what now?"

Ellie smiled at him. "Acetaminophen."

He closed his eyes in embarrassment. "Yeah, it's, uh, right over here."

As he took the bottle out of the medicine cabinet, Ellie filled a glass up with water. When she turned the faucet off, he noticed her hands shaking a little bit.

"Ward?" she said quietly.

"Yeah?"

She turned to face him, and the anxious expression on her face was almost identical to that of her sister's. "Are you sure Leo is all right?"

He sighed. "Ellie, he'll be fine. He's dealt with this kind of thing before. And he's got May and Coulson with him. He couldn't be in better hands."

She nodded, but didn't seem too convinced.

When they reentered the lab, Ellie rushed over to Skye and handed her the glass of water, along with the pills.

"Now, I'm giving you 600 milligrams, even though technically you should only take a maximum of 400 milligrams every 4 to 6 hours, but these are extenuating circumstances, so I'm bending the rules a little bit. Just don't make a habit of this, okay? It could damage your stomach."

Skye laughed, but Ward saw the look that passed over her face. Her stomach had seen a lot more damage than Ellie probably realized.

"Wouldn't dream of it," she said as she downed the pills. "Gee, Simmons, your sister is almost as finicky as you are." Simmons rolled her eyes but didn't say anything as she continued to examine Skye's ankle. Skye glanced over at Ellie, who looked slightly hurt, and grabbed her hand. "I'm kidding, Ellie. Thank you. Really."

When Ellie gave her a small smile in return, Skye released her hand and turned back towards her leg. "So, Simmons, what's the damage? Am I gonna walk again?"

Simmons smiled ruefully. "It's not even a break, Skye. You'll be fine." She stood up and retrieved a first aid kit, removing a roll of bandages. "In fact, you'll probably be able to walk normally in a couple of days."

Skye looked shocked. "A couple  _days_? You're kidding, right?"

Simmons shook her head as she began to wrap Skye's ankle. "You'll have to keep it elevated for a little while, yes, but you should be back on your feet in no time. It's just a strain."

"You mean sprain?"

"No," Simmons replied almost apologetically. "Strain."

"Wha- _Seriously_?" Skye groaned. "My first real mission, and I had to get injured in probably the lamest possible way."

Ellie walked around Ward to stand next to Simmons, pointing at Skye's ankle. "Jemma," she murmured, "you probably want to wrap it the other way in order to prevent pressure from building up on-"

"I know what I'm doing, Ellie," Simmons snapped at her. Ellie fell silent as Simmons finished wrapping the bandage.

"Thanks, Simmons," Skye said, trying and failing to suppress a yawn. "You're the best."

"Looks like it's someone's bedtime," Ward sighed and moved to help her out of the chair.

She feebly held up her arms in protest. "No, Ward, I have to wait up for the rest of the team."

He ignored her and lifted her out of the chair. "It's been a long night, Skye, and you're injured."

"Barely," she muttered sleepily. He tried not to laugh at her disappointment for not getting a more serious injury.

"I'll wake you up when we get back to the Hub. Deal?"

She sighed. "Deal."

Simmons briskly walked ahead of him and opened the door to Skye's bunk, pulling back her covers and getting extra blankets to elevate her foot. He set Skye down on the bed and stood by the door as Simmons got her situated.

"All right, do you need anything else?"

Skye shook her head.

Ellie came in the bunk with Skye's glass of water refilled and set it down on the shelf. "Here you are. Now, you'll call out if you need us, right?"

Skye chuckled, but her eyelids were drooping. "Yes, Dr. Simmons."

Simmons and Ellie filed past Ward and began to head back down to the lab. Ward was about to close Skye's door when he heard a sound that made him freeze.

"Ward?" The light was dim, but he could hear the tears in her voice. He quickly walked over to her side and gingerly sat down on the bed, making sure not to sit on her leg.

"What is it?" he asked, even though he knew. She wasn't crying, but her eyes were glistened over as she looked at him with open agony.

"Does it get easier?" she whispered, and he didn't have to ask what she was talking about.

He thought about lying to her. But only for a moment.

"No," he said quietly.

Skye breathed out slowly and nodded. He could tell she was trying to be strong. "Could you stay until I fall asleep?"

"Of course."

She was out in less than a minute.


	6. Chapter 6

They quickly strode up the Bus's cargo ramp, and May noticed Simmons and Ellie emerging from the doorway at the top of the steps. When Simmons caught glimpse of the trio, she bounded down the stairs, Ellie on her heels.

"Sir, what is it?" Simmons asked, briefly glancing at Coulson before rushing over towards Fitz.

Fitz waved his free hand at Simmons and her sister. "Both of you stay back. We're putting it in the Cage."

Ellie's wide eyes followed Fitz as he made his way past her. She sidestepped closer to Coulson as they all travelled in a pack up the steps. "Sir, is everything all right?"

"We don't know, Ellie," he replied. "But I'm not taking any chances with this thing. It's gonna stay in isolation until we get to the Hub." He quickly glanced around the group and voiced the question that was going through May's head. "Simmons. Where are Ward and Skye?"

Simmons had grabbed the other end of the containment case, ignoring the protesting glares from her partner. She turned her head behind her as they reached the top of the steps. "They're here, sir. I took a look at her ankle, and from what I could tell it's just a small strain. But she was so tired that we all thought she should get some sleep."

Coulson nodded, his face showing the relief that swept through May as well. She hadn't realized how much she'd been worried about Skye's safety, but she was glad that she had one less thing to worry about. That is, until they brought Skye into the field again.

But they had more pressing matters to attend to at the moment.

FitzSimmons swiftly set the case down on the interrogation table and as Fitz set to securing it for takeoff, May heard footsteps approaching from behind them. She knew who it was without turning around.

"Sir?" Ward's voice came from somewhere over her left shoulder. She automatically tensed up whenever she heard his voice now. She hadn't liked the way things had ended between them, especially considering what he'd gone through with that Asgardian, but it had been necessary. Things had gone too far, and with Coulson acting so strange lately, May had needed to focus all of her energy on making sure he didn't do anything colossally stupid. But Ward had been less than mature about the whole situation and had insisted on acting as awkward as possible around her. So of course she mostly ignored him. "What's the plan?"

"We complete the mission as fast as possible," Coulson replied. "May?" He looked at her with poorly disguised anxiety. "Get us off the ground. Now."

May wanted nothing more than to deliver the 0-8-4 immediately, but she had to at least broach the subject. "Phil, what about those airport security guards? You think we should just leave them?"

"Honestly, I couldn't care less about those guys. If HQ wants to send a team to take care of them, they can be my guests. We've done what we were told to do. We've got the 0-8-4. Now let's get out of here."

She tried to convey her apprehension as they looked at each other for a few seconds. It was unlike Coulson to leave so many stones unturned. But she understood. She didn't want to be anywhere near that thing for longer than she had to, either. She gave him a subtle nod before heading towards the cockpit.

Twenty minutes later, everyone except for Skye was gathered around the Holocom. Fitz swiped a few keys, searching through S.H.I.E.L.D.'s armory database until he found what he was looking for. The specs from the Chitauri scepter flashed up on the screen.

"Is that-?" Simmons began.

"I think it is," Ward breathed.

"Loki's scepter," Ellie murmured, and looked around in confusion. "Why are we looking at Loki's scepter?"

"The 0-8-4 we found looks a lot like this stone," Coulson replied, pointing at the screen to the head of the scepter. "Fitz, what can you tell us?"

Fitz held the tablet containing the information the D.W.A.R.F.s had collected in one hand as he scrolled through the scepter's diagnostics with the other. "It…appears to have the same dimensions as the original, sir. But the status on here says it's in custody at HQ. There's nothing about it having gone missing or anything."

"You think there's  _two_  of them?" Ward asked, his voice raised. " _That's_  what we have on the Bus right now? Sir," he said in alarm, turning towards Coulson. "This thing is lethal. Even Agent Barton wasn't able to fight it."

"I know, Ward," Coulson said, sounding annoyed. "I was there."

Ward closed his eyes briefly as he seemed to remember just how much experience Coulson had with this particular 0-8-4. "I'm sorry, sir. It's just…we don't know how to control this thing. I don't want a repeat of…the last mission," he finished, staring down at the table. May agreed with him. She would be just fine if she never had to deal with a brainwashed team member ever again.

"That's why we're handing it off to the experts," Coulson responded. "But it still wouldn't hurt to get a better idea of what it is we're shacking up with at the moment." He turned to Simmons's sister. "Ellie, when you were on the ground in New York, did you and Professor Martell come across anything like this?"

"What's he talking about, Ellie?" Simmons muttered. Ellie looked flustered, like she hadn't expected to be called on, but she recovered her composure.

"No, sir," she said, ignoring Simmons's question. "All the weapons we found were dormant, having been deactivated when Mr. Stark exploded the Chitauri ship. We weren't even allowed anywhere near the scepter, actually, but it must have been all right because Agent Romanoff handed it off to S.H.I.E.L.D. authorities after the Battle. From what I gathered, no one has been able to figure out how it works exactly, only that it has the ability to somehow control the mind through touch and it's connected in some way to the Tesseract."

"She's right," Fitz continued. "We have no idea how the scepter was able to open that portal. It's science that's  _way_  ahead of us right now. Last I heard, S.H.I.E.L.D. was keeping it locked away at the Triskelion. And, of course, the Tesseract is up in Asgard."

There was a pause as they all looked at the screen. Ward broke the silence. "Then what was that stone doing in the Denver airport?"

No one had an answer.

"I'll get Sitwell on the phone, tell him we're on our way. In the meantime, no one goes near that room. We've got a couple hours before we get back to the Hub. I suggest everyone gets some rest."

Everyone nodded, but May could tell Coulson knew no one was going to be sleeping anytime soon. He left the room, along with Ward, who was probably heading straight to the bar. It'd been a long day.

May was about to head back to the cockpit when she heard Simmons interrogating her sister in fierce whispers.

"What the bloody hell was that all about? When were you ever on the ground in New York?"

"Jemma, please don't be upset. I didn't want you to worry. It was after the Battle, and we were just doing a general sweep to look for the possibility of alien viruses."

May heard Simmons breathe in sharply. " _What_?"

"We didn't find anything," Ellie continued hurriedly, and paused. "I mean, obviously we missed something but…well…you already knew that," she finished quietly.

Simmons was shocked. "I can't believe you would be so  _stupid_  as to- Hang on. Why would you even be there in the first place? You were in the middle of your pharmacology studies at the Academy."

"I  _was_  studying pharmacology," Ellie corrected her politely. "And actually, I never stopped. But Dr. Martell and I went beyond pharmacology to create a new field of study, which is what I used as a basis for my independent project."

"Oh, this is so cool, Jemma," Fitz said. "Wait 'til you hear what it is."

Simmons turned on Fitz. "You  _knew_ about this? How come you didn't tell me?"

Fitz looked uncomfortable, but scoffed. "You two really need to work on your communication. Jemma, it wasn't my place."

"I'll deal with you later," Simmons murmured to him under her breath. She turned back around to face her sister, plastering a smile on her face. "What were you studying, dear?"

"Um, well, we're calling it astropathology at the moment, but I suppose it could also be referred to as astropharmacology," Ellie said.

"Did you hear that, Jemma? Your little sister's gonna be an alien coroner one day."

Ellie laughed, but May detected a hint of nervousness when she spoke. "Oh, Leo, don't be absurd. That's far ahead of what we've been working on. I doubt we'll be able to perform post-mortem examinations on extraterrestrials in my lifetime."

"Is that what you were doing a few months ago when we were at the Academy?" Simmons asked quietly. "When you were on the other side of the country?"

May snuck a glance at Ellie out of the corner of her eye. Her movements seemed to falter for a moment, but only for a moment. May doubted she would have been able to detect a pause if she hadn't been looking for one.

"Mmhmm," Ellie nodded, and gasped too loudly. "Oh! We've forgotten about Skye! Should we go wake her up and tell her what's going on?"

"Absolutely not, Ellie," Simmons replied. "She needs her rest. But what exactly were you-"

"We could really use her, though. Leo said she's phenomenally good with accessing private information. What if she could dig deeper into the airport records and see if there's any clue as to what organizations were operating down there?" May could tell that Ellie was grasping at straws, trying to deflect Simmons's probing questions, but she deflected very well. It was a valid suggestion.

Simmons shook her head. "Regardless of who was playing around with the stone, we were only told to retrieve it and bring it back to the Hub. We're not supposed to-"

"Actually, Simmons, that's not a bad idea." Fitz pressed a few keys on the Holocom. "We might not have to wake up Skye, but we can do a little digging on our own."

"Fitz, are you sure that's really-"

"Oh, come on, Jemma," Fitz sighed. "Live a little."

Simmons huffed in response but didn't retaliate.

"Okay," Fitz said as he brought up a few of the websites Skye had shown them earlier. "Now. Who would want to play around with a mind-controlling rock of doom?"

"Well, that's obvious, isn't it?" Ellie replied. When they looked at her questioningly, she raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Loki, of course."

Simmons scoffed. "Ellie, that's ridiculous. He's dead."

"I don't know, Jemma," Fitz shook his head. "There's been a lot of weird stuff going on with Asgard. Maybe that's just what they want us to think. You know, so we don't try to attack the planet and kill him ourselves."

"I think we would know if he were back, Fitz. He's not exactly discreet."

"Fine," Fitz sighed. "I have another theory. But I don't think you'll like it."

"What is it?"

He hesitated. "S.H.I.E.L.D."

May's head snapped up. They still didn't notice that she hadn't left the room.

"I don't understand," Ellie said in confusion. "What about S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

"I mean…" Fitz paused. "What if the Denver bunker was another one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secret locations? You know, kind of like the-" He cleared his throat as Simmons subtly shook her head, silently warning him not to say anything about the Guest House in front of Ellie. "Well, I mean, it's hardly a secret that S.H.I.E.L.D. has secrets. What if some of our guys were over there trying to figure out how the scepter works?"

"Oh," Simmons's face lit up as she stepped closer to Fitz. "Yes, that would make sense, because if they didn't know what they were dealing with, they'd need somewhere to keep it from opening up another portal or something." She moved around Fitz to pull up the diagrams of the Denver airport. "Skye said the place was built to withstand a nuclear explosion. It  _would_  be the perfect place to experiment with unknown Tesseract technology."

Ellie cleared her throat, and Simmons looked somewhat startled, like she'd forgotten Ellie was there, a common habit FitzSimmons had when they got excited about something. "Sorry, Jemma. It's just…all that makes sense and everything, but why would S.H.I.E.L.D. send  _us_  to retrieve it if they were using it in the first place?"

Fitz turned his body slightly towards Simmons and lightly nudged her shoulder with his finger, deep in thought. "She's right. It doesn't add up."

Simmons groaned in exasperation. "I don't know, all right? But it wouldn't be the first time S.H.I.E.L.D. has been less than honest with us about a mission."

"Wait," Ellie said, remembering something. "We were supposed to neutralize the 0-8-4 before we brought it back to the Hub. Maybe we should-"

"Ellie, please don't make ridiculous suggestions. There is  _no way_  you are going in that room."

"But, Jemma, what if-"

"Ellie, Fitz and I already have experience with this kind of thing, and it's too dangerous. You're not going in there."

"Oh, it's too dangerous, is it? Well, it's not like I'm suggesting jumping out of an airplane or anything."

There was silence, and the look on Ellie's face showed that she seemed to regret her words. May had a feeling she rarely stood up to her sister.

She took a deep breath. "All I'm saying, Jemma, is that we can't just waltz this thing into the Hub without taking the precautions-"

"Ellie," Simmons said calmly, but May could hear the tremor in her voice. "We know what we're doing. The 0-8-4 stays where it is."

"But-"

"So," Simmons raised her voice, "If you've got nothing of value to contribute, I suggest you go find something else to do."

Ellie's face fell, her cheeks flushed. After a pause, she gave a small nod before leaving the room, avoiding everyone's eyes.

"Jemma," Fitz said softly. Simmons was looking down at the table, her knuckles white as she held onto its edge.

"Fitz, please don't," she said quietly, briefly closing her eyes.

"No, Jemma," he said firmly, placing a hand on her arm. "What the hell was that all about?"

Simmons looked like she was about to cry, which May took as her cue to leave. After she had slipped quietly out of the room, unnoticed by the two scientists wrapped up in their own little world, she was heading towards the cockpit when she decided to follow another instinct instead.

As May entered the cargo hold, she paused at the top of the steps, silently watching the little girl throw herself at the punching bag below. Ellie was facing away from the staircase, so she hadn't noticed May come in. Her movements were frantic, the black bag steadfastly refusing to budge under her punches. Even though she wasn't crying, May felt something stir within her as she saw how distressed the girl was. She was halfway down the steps before her mind had even processed her decision.

Ellie paused abruptly, breathing heavily. She continued to stare at the punching bag in front of her face. "Jemma," she began. "I-"

Her voice caught in her throat as she turned her head to see May standing beside her.

"Oh," she said quietly. "Agent May. I'm sorry, I was just-"

"Your feet," May interrupted her.

Ellie looked baffled. "Sorry?"

"Pay attention to your feet," May said as she stepped closer to Ellie. "You're small, so you've already got a low center of gravity. But you're concentrating too much on your arms. Try to relax your fingers and focus on your foot placement as you step into the punch. Like this." May placed her right foot out in front of the other and bent her knees slightly, and as she stepped forward, Ellie tried to copy her movements.

"Good," May nodded. "When you're in a fight, balance is everything. Your opponent will be trying to take you down in the easiest way possible, so you can't afford to get knocked off your feet. Now, as you move forward, keep this taut," she said, gesturing toward her abdomen. "And try to focus on moving from the waist."

She stepped backward, giving Ellie complete access to the punching bag. She raised her hands up in front of her face. "No punches yet," May said. "Try a few blocks first."

Ellie gave a small nod and tentatively stepped forward. After a couple botched attempts, she seemed to fall into a steady rhythm. May almost smiled. This girl picked up things fast.

"Good, good," she said, walking up and placing a hand on the bag. It was swaying slightly, but Ellie still hadn't made much of a difference in its placement. "Your breathing still needs work, though. Concentrate on matching your breath with your movements. It'll keep you from running out of energy in a fight."

Ellie nodded, meeting May's eyes for the first time since she had arrived. "Why are you telling me all this?"

May hesitated. "Your opponent isn't going to care about going easy on you. They'll take one look at you and kill you without hesitating. When you're out in the field, you can't rely on anyone else to save you." She softened her voice as she saw the fear in Ellie's eyes. "But you've got an advantage. They'll underestimate you."

Ellie shook her head. "But I've got no skill, no power, no way to even-"

"Power comes from the ground," May interrupted her. "As long as you maintain good posture and pay attention to your feet, you'll have all the power you need. And you have more skill than you realize. I heard you took down Agent Ward earlier today," she smirked.

Ellie's cheeks turned pink. "Oh, that was just a bit of luck," she said shyly. "I'm sure he let me win."

"No, he didn't," May assured her.

She placed her hand on the bag again. "Now. Let's try a few jabs. But before you do anything, take a few breaths and center yourself. Try to remember what we've gone over. It's hard to stay calm in a fight, but if you practice enough, it could help give you the energy you need to get out alive."

Ellie held her hands up, and closed her eyes. After a few deep breaths, her eyes whipped open and she lunged forward, her fist making contact with the black vinyl. She gave a small gasp as it flew forward a few inches, a look of disbelief on her face. She broke into a smile and looked over at May, who gave her a nod of approval. Her smile faded as she took another deep breath, making contact with the bag again and falling into a rhythm of jabs and crosses.

May let her get into a comfortable zone before she spoke again.

"Your work hasn't just been theoretical, has it?" she asked quietly.

Ellie froze, staring at the bag swaying before her. She hesitated for a moment before resuming her punches.

"Of course it has, Agent May. Why would I lie about that?"

"Maybe because you've been ordered to. I don't know. But I do know that there are already drugs out there that have been created from alien DNA." She paused before venturing forward again, making sure to keep her voice soft. "But you knew that, too, didn't you? You helped create them?"

Ellie didn't pause this time, but her face turned white and she pursed her lips together in concentration.

"It's okay. You don't have to tell me. But you should be careful about who you're working for. There are a lot of people out there who would kill for what you've created." May let her words sink in before turning around to head back up the stairs.

"Nothing's been tested on anyone," she heard Ellie murmur behind her, and if May didn't have the ears of a bat, she might have missed it. She turned around to see that Ellie had stopped swinging, but she was still staring at the bag. She turned her head and looked May in the eyes. "Not yet, at least."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," May replied.

Ellie looked confused, but she shook her head. "I can handle myself."

"I know you can," May said, trying to make sure Ellie knew she was telling the truth. "But there are organizations out there who will think that they can take advantage of you."

"What should I do?" Ellie asked quietly, and the apprehensive look on her face was like looking at an old photograph of herself.

"Don't let them."


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N (UPDATED 4/4/14): This chapter contains major spoilers for Captain America: The Winter Soldier. I sincerely apologize to everyone who has already read it without being warned. It was a complete and total accident because I actually published this chapter immediately before seeing the film. Again, I apologize.

"Jemma," he repeated, willing her to look at him. She didn't want to look at him, because she knew that if she did, the tears that she was trying to hold back would spill over.

"Fitz, please," she said, forcing her voice to remain calm as she moved away from him and fiddled with the Holocom controls, exiting out of the programs they had opened. "You heard her. She was doing what she always does, acting like she bloody knows everything." Her hands curled up into fists as she finally glanced up at him. "Can you believe her? She  _actually_  thought it would be a good idea to go in there with that… _thing_ ," she finished in disgust.

Fitz moved closer to her, which she wished he wouldn't do. He was always able to see right through her.

"Jemma, are you mad?" His words cut into her, but he didn't sound angry. "Did you honestly think that I would have let her go in there?" She broke away from his intense gaze, staring at her hands. "No, this is about something else."

Jemma gave a weak laugh. "What are you talking about, Fitz?"

"You and Ellie haven't always gotten on," he said quietly, which almost made Jemma laugh again. That was an understatement. "But it's never been like…this. This is different. This isn't just some petty fear that she's…I don't know, somehow going to be better than you."

She scoffed, about to cut him off, but he pressed on. "Oh, Jemma, don't act like that hasn't been the case. You've always been jealous of her, which I'll admit I've always found to be completely irrational. I mean, she's your little sister, for God's sake.  _She_  looks up to  _you_."

Jemma snorted. "Oh, please, Fitz, no she doesn't. You're just sticking up for her because she's got you wrapped around her little finger." She hated herself the moment the words were out of her mouth. She knew how much Fitz cared about Ellie. He loved her like his own sister. Jemma had admitted to herself a long time ago, right around the time Ellie started going to the Academy, that she was glad Ellie had another person to look out of her. One who was not so utterly incapable of being a good sibling.

Fitz sighed. "Got it all out, now, have you?"

Her vision blurred as she stared at the table. Fitz gently pulled her hand away from the Holocom and brought her into his arms. As she rested her forehead on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around him, she tried not to cry, but she was unable to stop a few tears from falling. She concentrated on Fitz's hand gently stroking her hair and tried to calm her breathing.

"She shouldn't be here, Fitz," she murmured. She felt Fitz's movements still, his hand paused on her hair, and after a moment he pulled away.

"We're heading back to the Hub now," he replied. "She won't be with us anymore."

Jemma shook her head. "That's not what I meant, Fitz." She was unused to having to explain herself to Fitz, especially about something she didn't even know how to put into words. "I meant she shouldn't be  _here_. At S.H.I.E.L.D." Jemma felt the tears welling up in her eyes again. "She wanted to be a doctor, Fitz," she whispered. "When we were younger. Why couldn't she just go be a doctor? Why S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

"You know why, Jemma," Fitz said softly, and she saw the answer in his eyes. But it was an answer she didn't want to hear.

"Fitz, it doesn't make sense! I mean, do you even  _know_  how many times we've almost  _died_  since we've joined S.H.I.E.L.D.? In the last few months alone, I've lost count. Why on earth would-"

"Twelve." Fitz had said it so quietly, she almost hadn't heard him.

"What?" she breathed.

"Twelve," he repeated, looking her in the eyes. "That's how many times we've almost died since we joined the team."

Jemma was caught off-guard by the look of pain in his eyes, but she pressed forward. "Then how could you ever think I would be okay with Ellie being here?"

Fitz looked like he was about to place his hands on her shoulders, but he seemed to change his mind at the last second. Instead he rested one hand the Holocom next to hers and tapped his finger on the glass. "Jemma, I was nervous about her coming with us, too. But she's not going to be in the field after this. She'll get her assignment tomorrow morning and head off to SciOps or the Sandbox or wherever and never have to see the things we've seen. She'll be safe."

"And what if she isn't, Fitz? What if she decides to do the same thing we did? She's dabbling in things that  _we've_  never even heard of. Astropharmacology? Do you have any idea what kind of implications that could have for the world? God, she could develop the next generation of vaccines for all we know! Other field agents are going to notice her eventually, if they haven't already. And they'll want her on their teams."

"Jemma, she's not a little kid anymore. You've gotta let her grow up. Make her own mistakes and all that. Besides, you got out of the lab and you turned out all right."

She scoffed, looking down at her hands. "Did I?"

Fitz actually did place his hands on her shoulders this time. She glanced up to see him nodding. "Yes," he said firmly. But she wasn't quite so sure he was telling the truth. There had been times during the past few months when she had caught him staring at her with poorly disguised concern.

He released her after giving her shoulders a small squeeze and smirked. "Well, I mean, it'd probably be best if you didn't throw yourself off of any more airplanes, yeah?" She smiled a little bit. He would never let that go. "No grenades, either."

Jemma sighed. "What am I going to do, Fitz?"

He placed a finger on her elbow and gently led her out of the room. "Well, for starters, you can go and apologize."

She groaned. "I'm not so good at that."

"Believe me, I am painfully aware." She narrowed her eyes at him, but he had a smile on his face.

"She probably won't even want to talk to me. I've been such an arse to her."

"All the more reason for you to suck it up and say you're sorry." Fitz sighed. "She'll forgive you, Jem. She loves you more than you know. And I know that you love her, so..." he said, nudging her forward. "Chop chop."

Jemma rolled her eyes but hesitantly made her way over to Ward's bunk. He had been nice enough earlier to make it ready for Ellie's arrival, while Jemma had been too busy bickering with Fitz about her being there in the first place to even think about where she would sleep. Yet another reason why she wouldn't be receiving the Sister of the Year Award.

She raised her hand up to the door and took a deep breath before knocking lightly.

"Ellie? It's me. Can I talk to you?"

"She's not in there." Jemma jumped slightly and turned around to see Ward sitting at the bar, staring down at his drink. He gestured behind him toward the stairs leading to the cargo bay. "Downstairs," he said, taking another sip.

"Thanks," Jemma murmured, walking past him and carefully making her way down the steps. When she reached the bottom of the staircase, she took another deep breath before turning to enter the lab. As the doors whooshed open, she noticed Ellie standing near one of the storage drawers, staring at something in her hand.

"Ellie, I-" she began, and stopped in her tracks. "What are you doing?"

Ellie hadn't looked up when she arrived, her wide eyes fixed on the small vial in her palm. Jemma knew what it was without having to see the label. The drawer she had hidden the vial in was open in front of Ellie.

When they were growing up, and Jemma had caught Ellie sneaking another biscuit at tea or reading her diary, Ellie would always give a small gasp and clap a hand over her mouth when she'd been discovered. It was always the same reaction. Even as they grew older and Ellie's antics lessened in frequency, she always responded in the same way. It used to annoy Jemma, but she would have preferred that reaction to the one she received now.

"Jemma," Ellie said in a tone of voice that made the hairs on the back of Jemma's neck stand up. It was almost deadly. She slowly turned to face her, the expression on her face one that Jemma was unfamiliar with. She was looking at Jemma as if  _Jemma_  had been the one caught snooping in  _her_  lab. "Where did you get this?"

Jemma took a few moments to recover from her shock. She quickly walked up to Ellie and snatched the empty GH-325 vial out of her hand.

"Ellie, this is classified material," she said sharply. "It's above your clearance level. What were you doing, prying through our things like that?"

Ellie didn't back down from Jemma's angry tone. She looked scared, but Jemma didn't think it was because of her. "No, Jemma,  _where did you get this_?"

Jemma shook her head, confused. She had no idea why Ellie would be so concerned about an empty vial of a drug that almost nobody knew about. She briefly considered telling her the truth. After all, they were still on the Bus, so she could argue to Coulson that the information was technically staying "in-house." But Ellie had been acting so weird lately that Jemma wasn't sure she could trust her with sensitive information. She knew that Ellie wouldn't fall for a flat-out lie, so Jemma tried to take a page out of her own book and weasel her way around a half-truth.

"Ellie, relax. It's just a little something Fitz and I have been-"

" _No_ , Jemma," Ellie said, her voice rising almost hysterically. "There's only one place in the  _world_  that that exists, and it's been dest-" She stopped talking immediately, her wide eyes and pink face indicating that she had said too much.

Jemma eyed her suspiciously. "Ellie, what on earth are you going on about?"

"Nothing," Ellie replied too quickly, her voice nearly an octave higher than normal. She cleared her throat. "Er…sorry, Jemma, I-I thought it was something else. But I was mistaken. Really, forgive me." She avoided Jemma's eyes as she sped toward the lab door.

Jemma wasn't ready to let her leave without explaining herself. But she knew Ellie would expertly deflect her questions, so she said the first thing that came to mind to keep her there.

"Well, you really shouldn't be looking through things that don't belong to you, Ellie. You'll find the quickest way to get thrown out of S.H.I.E.L.D. is to interfere with the compartmentalization of information."

Ellie paused, and Jemma noticed her shoulders tense as she clenched her fists. "Jemma, why do you hate me so much?"

Jemma was glad Ellie's back was turned to her, because she knew her face would show how hurt she felt, how each word had been like a knife to her gut. She felt her airway constrict as she tried to breathe normally, but the stress of seeing Skye injured again and worrying about Fitz in enemy territory and trying to reconcile Ellie being in the field with them was almost too much for her to handle.

"I don't…hate you, Ellie," she finally managed to get out.

"Oh, really?" Ellie turned around, and Jemma saw that her eyes had tears in them. "Is that why you've been so ecstatic to have me here?" She scoffed. "I mean, I knew you didn't like me, Jemma, but you've  _really_  stepped it up a notch since I've been on board."

Jemma shook her head, forcing herself to keep her tears at bay. This entire conversation was spiraling out of her control.

"Ellie, that's absurd."

"Oh, come on, Jemma. I'm not an idiot. It's obvious you don't want me here. And you've always been less than thrilled about me joining S.H.I.E.L.D."

"Well, maybe I had a right to be, Ellie," Jemma said, her voice raised to match Ellie's intensity. Jemma hated feeling inferior in a fight, even when she knew she was wrong. Fitz called her out on it more times than she would have liked, but it was a habit she hadn't kicked yet. "All right? Maybe I've seen things that would give you nightmares. Maybe I don't want this life for you!"

Ellie looked at her incredulously. "I'm a big girl now, Jemma. I can take care of myself. Besides, it's not like I'm gonna be jumping into the field anytime soon. I'll be in the lab, safe and tucked away with the good guys."

"But that's the thing, Ellie. I'm not entirely sure S.H.I.E.L.D.  _are_  the good guys anymore." Jemma hadn't expected those words to come out of her mouth, but once she said them, she realized that it was a fear that had been eating away at her ever since that incident in Ossetia when Ward and Fitz had been stranded without an extraction plan. Everything that had happened since then (discovering the impossible and potentially unethical way Coulson had been brought back from the dead, the hidden location of a drug that had the ability to regenerate damaged blood cells, Coulson's refusal to let her send Skye's blood to HQ for further study) had slowly chipped away at Jemma's armor of trust for the system.

"Jemma, don't be ridiculous."

"I'm not, Ellie." She sighed. "Just listen to what I'm saying, will you? You'd be much better off going back to England and becoming a doctor like you've always wanted."

Ellie's eyes broke away from Jemma's as she glanced down at her hands. "Maybe that's not what I want anymore," she said quietly.

"What are you talking about?"

Ellie sighed exasperatedly. "Jemma, S.H.I.E.L.D. has given me  _so_  many more opportunities to do good in the world. I've finally found something that I'm good at, something that almost no one else can do, and I'm not just going to give that up."

"But-"

"God, Jemma, all I ever wanted was to be like you!" Ellie angrily wiped a tear that had escaped down her cheek and folded her arms.

Jemma breathed in sharply. "What?" she whispered, uncomprehending.

Ellie finally met her gaze and rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't pretend to be so shocked, Jemma. Of course I did. You were all I had growing up. You were so cool and so smart and…well, you were the oldest, so I just assumed that it was normal to have a PhD by the time you were 18 years old."

Jemma's face must have still looked shocked because Ellie sighed again. "Jemma,  _come on_. Why do you think I chose to go to Cambridge? Why do you think I jumped at the chance to join S.H.I.E.L.D. in the first place? It was because of you!"

"Ellie…I don't know what the hell you're talking about. Y-you could have done anything you wanted. You've always been popular and smart and talented at bloody everything-"

"Jemma, are you  _mad_?" Ellie was furious. "I've worked  _so_  hard…just to get to a  _fraction_  of where you've gotten. You know, for such a smart person, you can really be an idiot sometimes."

Jemma still didn't quite understand, but she was starting to realize that she had misjudged her sister. "Ellie, I'm sorry-" she began.

"You're  _sorry_?" Ellie cut her off. Jemma had never seen her so upset before. "For what? For-for shutting me out when all I ever wanted was to be your friend? For letting  _Leo_  be the one to tell me that you almost  _died_? That you willingly sacrificed yourself without even saying goodbye?"

Jemma was stunned. "That was a situation… _entirely_  out of my control-"

"But you didn't even bother to tell me about it, did you?" Ellie shouted. Her tears were flowing freely now. "I wasn't important enough."

Jemma shook her head again, knowing that if this continued for much longer, she would start crying as well. "Ellie, that was never it. You've got it all wrong."

"That's the story of my life, isn't it, Jemma?" Ellie muttered scornfully. "I'm always getting everything wrong. Well, not to worry," she cleared her throat, wiping the tears off of her face and giving Jemma a contemptuous smile. "You won't have to deal with my ineptitude for much longer." She paused, taking a deep breath. "I've been invited to join a project, and I've decided to accept."

Jemma was thrown. "What? What are you talking about? What project?"

"It doesn't matter," Ellie replied, avoiding Jemma's eyes. " _They_  appreciate the work that I've done.  _They're_  not going to shut me out. And I'll finally be out of your hair, so you never have to talk to me again if you like. I know how much that would please you." She turned on her heel, heading for the lab doors.

In the back of her mind, Jemma realized that she should probably say something to stop Ellie, but she was unable to do anything except stand there in stunned silence. Jemma knew how to fix biochemical problems, she knew how to fix the Holotable when it stopped working, she even knew how to fix Fitz's hair when it sometimes stood up in the back. But she didn't know how to fix this.

Ellie paused on the stairwell, her hand on the rail. She looked over at her sister. "Goodbye, Jemma," she said quietly before heading up the steps.

* * *

"So what did you think of your first mission?" Ward asked as he, Coulson, and Fitz led Ellie into the Hub.

When she had come up from the cargo hold, eyes reddened, he had tried to convince her to sleep for a little while. They had all been awake through the night, and he had told her that she didn't have to report back to Sitwell until the afternoon if she wanted. But as they landed, she had insisted upon accompanying them to deliver the 0-8-4 to Sitwell.

"Honestly, it was all a bit too exciting for my taste," Ellie replied. "Goodness, that sounds completely barmy, doesn't it? I didn't even go into the field with you all."

Ward smiled at her. "It's perfectly understandable. Sometimes it's worse to be the one that stays behind, not knowing if your team is going to come back." Her face seemed to pale, and Ward cursed himself for his lack of tact. "I'm sorry you couldn't stay with us a little longer. I promise not all missions are that stressful."

"I'm sure," she said, brightening a little. "But all the same, I think I'd quite like to stick to the lab."

"Agent Coulson." Sitwell strode toward them, shaking Coulson's hand. He pointed at the containment case in Fitz's arms. "Is this it?"

Fitz nodded, and Sitwell motioned to one of his colleagues, who took the case from Fitz and carried it off down the hallway, undoubtedly heading for a very safe and very secure destination. Ward felt his shoulders relax as the case disappeared from his view. That could have been a lot worse.

Sitwell clasped his hands together and turned to Ellie. "So. How was it?"

Ellie shook her head, looking like she was trying to find the right description. "Crazy," she said finally, but there was a smile on her face. They all laughed appreciatively.

"Well, Coulson," Sitwell said after a pause. "I think I'll take Ellie here and bring her into debriefing. Thank you for looking out for her."

"Not a problem," Coulson replied, smiling at Ellie.

Ellie turned to face Coulson, holding out her hand. "Agent Coulson, it really has been an honor. Thank you so much for putting up with me."

Coulson shook her hand, giving her a respectful nod. "It was our pleasure, Ellie. We loved having you on board. I'm sorry you couldn't stick around with us for a little while longer. Maybe once you get situated we can talk to your S.O. about joining us for another mission."

"Maybe," she responded. She smiled politely, but Ward could tell that no matter how much she liked Coulson, she probably wouldn't be itching to go on another mission anytime soon.

She turned to Ward. "Thank you, Ward, for everything. And…I'm sorry about…" She lowered her voice. "Earlier."

He shook his head and chuckled, remembering how this tiny Simmons had punched his ego in the face by pinning him to the ground. "Don't apologize. I deserved it." He looked her in the eyes. "I underestimated you."

Ellie's cheeks turned pink, and before he knew what he was doing, Ward stepped forward and gave her a brief hug.

"All right, all right, don't scare her, Ward," Fitz muttered under his breath. Ward cleared his throat and stepped back, letting Ellie say her goodbye to Fitz. Fitz sighed as Ellie wrapped her arms around him, and the rest of them tried to ignore the two as they conversed in low murmurs. Ward didn't really know what had happened after Simmons had gone downstairs to find her sister, but from what he could tell by the dark circles under Ellie's eyes, it hadn't gone well.

"You'll be careful, okay?" Fitz said as he finally pulled away.

Ellie laughed. "Oh, you mean in the big, dangerous lab I'll be working in?"

"Right you are," Fitz replied solemnly. "Science is dangerous, El. Beautiful, but dangerous."

She laughed again, but Ward could see the worry in her eyes. " _You'll_  be careful, too, all right, Leo?"

Ward could tell Fitz wanted to make another joke, but he must have thought better of it, because he nodded. "Yeah."

Ellie smiled at him before turning to face them all. "Thank you all again. Please give Agent May my love."

Fitz snorted. "Yeah, that won't be happening, El. But we'll tell her you said goodbye."

* * *

She nervously clasped her hands in front of her as Agent Sitwell led her down a nearly empty hallway. They were in the deep recesses of the Hub, and Ellie was unsure of where he was taking her. They reached a large metal doorway, and as Sitwell placed his thumb on the print scanner, he turned to face Ellie.

"Now, you can come in, but I have to ask you to stay by the door, all right?"

She nodded. "Yes, of course, sir."

He gave her a smile before opening the door and ushering her inside.

She quietly gasped as she stepped in the doorway. They had entered an armory, but she supposed it was quite unlike many normal armories, because as she looked around, she found herself recognizing many of the items. They were Chitauri weapons.

A group of about five S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists, all wearing white lab coats with a red S.H.I.E.L.D. crest on the front left pocket, was standing in the center of the room, examining something that Ellie couldn't see. As Sitwell approached them, they parted a little and Ellie stifled another gasp.

There, in the center of the group, was Loki's scepter. A blue stone rested on the table next to it, glowing slightly. Sitwell exchanged a few words with one of the scientists, who nodded and appeared to be explaining something, gesturing towards the two objects. Sitwell talked with him for a few more minutes before briskly walking toward the exit.

When they were back in the hallway, Ellie was unable to stop herself. "So the 0-8-4 really  _was_  from Loki's scepter?"

Sitwell gave her a rueful smile, looking somewhat embarrassed. "Unfortunately, yes. We were studying its properties, trying to understand the technology behind it, but as we've discovered the hard way, its power is very seductive. We switched out our men every so often to keep them from being too heavily influenced, but we underestimated how far the object's influence actually reached. There was a small coup by some of the airport security. We lost six of our own."

"That's awful. I'm so sorry," Ellie said. She was surprised. Maybe Leo hadn't been exaggerating when he'd said being a S.H.I.E.L.D. scientist could be dangerous. Something pricked at the back of her mind. She paused before venturing forward. "Sir, if you knew what it was, why did you say it was-"

Sitwell gave a low laugh. "Ellie, I think you'll find out soon enough that sometimes it's a lot easier to say something's an 0-8-4 than to try to explain what it actually is. I needed a team to retrieve it as fast as possible, and I knew Coulson's team could handle the job. And I was right. You guys did very well."

Ellie nodded and smiled politely, but she had to admit that the whole situation didn't feel right. After all, the team hadn't known that they would meet hostiles, and Skye had been injured. But Ellie figured that she probably didn't understand everything about S.H.I.E.L.D.'s policies to make judgments.

They were now in the more populated area of the Hub, making their way into one of the mission debriefing rooms. Sitwell motioned for her to take a seat.

"Now, did you find any evidence of the GH-325?"

Ellie shook her head in amazement. "Honestly, when you mentioned it earlier, I thought it was just a precaution. I never thought in a hundred years I would find anything on Coulson's plane."

Sitwell nodded. "We suspected it was his team that took down the Guest House."

Ellie was stunned. All of her work, everything she had been trying to achieve for the last two years, was gone. She had known that, but to find out that her sister was involved? Something didn't add up.

"But sir, the vial I found…it was empty. You don't think they actually  _used_  it…on a  _person_?"

"Yeah, actually, I do," Sitwell replied.

"That's so unlike Jemma," Ellie murmured quietly. "She should know better than to give out drugs without knowing the potential side effects."

"Well," Sitwell said, "it certainly has been a strange situation. And it's a shame all that's left of the drug is gone." He sighed and sat up straighter. "But enough about them. Let's talk about you. We're very excited that you've decided to join us here at Project Phoenix."

She tried to push away her thoughts of Jemma and mustered up a smile. "I'm really excited as well, sir. But…forgive me, it's just…well, I don't really know what my role in the project is exactly."

"All in due time," Sitwell replied as he pulled out a small stack of papers. "But first, a few housekeeping things. Before I can tell you anything, I'll need you to sign a confidentiality agreement. It's just standard procedure. You understand, of course."

She nodded. "Yes, of course."

He slid the papers in front of her and handed her a pen. Her eyes automatically traveled to the red S.H.I.E.L.D. symbol on the top of the page.

"Sir, has S.H.I.E.L.D. changed its insignia?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I couldn't help but noticing the red crest. Until recently I'd only ever seen it in black or gray."

Sitwell smiled at her. "You're quite the observant one, aren't you? That's actually not the S.H.I.E.L.D. crest. It's the symbol of Project Phoenix." She leaned forward to examine it more closely. The lines she had taken to be the eagle's wings were actually flames upon closer inspection. It wasn't an eagle at all. It was a phoenix.

"Clever," she murmured. A secret project hidden in plain sight.

"We thought so," Sitwell said proudly.

Her eyes continued to scan the page. Right below the crest was a phrase written in a foreign language.

" _Von den Flammen der Vergangenheit, wir verbrannt. Aus der Asche steigen wir_ ," she read aloud. "From the fire…no, that's not it. From the…flames…of the past, we burned. Out of the ashes, we rise."

"You speak German," Sitwell noted with a hint of surprise.

"Oh, not fluently or anything," she replied as she signed the bottom of the page. "Just enough to hold a basic conversation."

"Well, I'm impressed."

"Does it mean anything in particular, sir?" she asked, briefly glancing up as she signed the next page. "It seems to suggest resurrecting something that was once dead. Has Project Phoenix been around for a while?"

"You could say that," he replied, taking the papers away from her and stowing them in his briefcase. "Now. It must have been a long night for you. Why don't you go get some rest? We'll meet in my office later this afternoon, say…" he glanced at his watch. "Around five?"

She nodded.

"My office is on the third floor. West hallway. I'll see you at five." She stood up to leave. "And Agent Simmons? Welcome to Project Phoenix."

* * *

"Jemma, why won't you just tell me-"

"Fitz, I  _told_  you I don't want to talk about it. Just let it go."

Fitz sighed. "Did you even at least  _try_  to apologize to her?"

"Of course I did," she snapped at him. "Obviously it didn't work."

"Jemma, stop," he said, placing his hand on hers. She paused, his hand keeping her from compiling the analyses of Skye's blood. "What. Happened?"

"Fitz, she knew about the GH-325," she said quietly, looking up at him with open fear.

He shook his head. "What? How on earth would she know about that?"

"How the hell should I know? But there's only one place that drug was kept." She raised her eyebrows at him and something clicked in his head.

"The Guest House," they said in unison.

"Why would Ellie have been at the Guest House?" he asked, deep in thought.

"Does it matter? She's hiding something from us, Fitz." She paused. "From  _both_ of us." She turned back toward her tablet, and it looked like she was setting up some kind of encryption. "We have to analyze Skye's blood further. She's the only source of the GH-325 we have besides Coulson."

"Yeah, but you said yourself you've hit a wall with our resources here. And Coulson told us to keep it on the Bus."

Jemma smiled a little. "He did, yes. When  _I_ asked him. But…he might listen to Skye."

* * *

She was glad that finding Agent Sitwell's office hadn't been too difficult. It was only a few doors down the corridor coming out of the lift.

Ellie checked her watch. She was five minutes early. It was a habit of hers, showing up early. But it usually worked in her favor.

As she approached the door, she noticed that it was cracked open slightly.

"Sir? Agent Sitwell?" she asked as she knocked lightly on the door. It swung open at her touch. She ventured inside, expecting to see him already in there, but the small office was empty.

"Oh," Ellie said to herself. She glanced behind her, but the corridor was silent. Ellie figured she was already too far into the room to go back out into the hallway without running the risk of looking like she had been snooping. So instead she walked over to stand in front of Sitwell's desk and folded her arms, patiently waiting for his arrival.

As she looked around the room, her eyes fell on one of the papers sitting on Sitwell's desk. It looked fairly simple, just a memorandum of some sort, but it was the paper peeking out underneath it that caught her attention. All she could make out was the top half of a red circle. She assumed they were the papers she was to be receiving for Project Phoenix, so without thinking she slid the sheet out. As she brought the paper closer to her face, her hands froze. The symbol on the top of the page wasn't the Project Phoenix symbol. It was something entirely different.

"Why is it that I always find one of the Simmons sisters hanging out in places they shouldn't be?" Ellie jumped in surprise at hearing Sitwell's voice and spun around.

Sitwell's eyes fell on the paper in Ellie's hands. He sighed loudly and turned around, quietly closing the door behind him.

"Oh, Ellie," he said with disappointment, taking his glasses off and rubbing his eyes. "I really wish you hadn't done that. Now I can't trust you." He put his glasses back on. "It's a shame, really. You would've been such a great asset to us."

She tried to think of a way to get out of there, but Sitwell had her cornered. There were no windows in the office, and he was blocking her only pathway to the door. She was about to take her chances and try to bolt past him when he quickly withdrew a weapon and fired at her.

The last thing Ellie heard before she blacked out was the sound of the dendrotoxin hitting her chest. The last thing that flashed through her mind was the red circle at the top of the page she had been caught with. The ominous skull. The six tentacles of the Greek mythological creature. The symbol of the Nazi science division that Captain America had supposedly destroyed during World War II.

HYDRA.

* * *

Skye winced in anticipation, gingerly setting her foot on the floor and expecting the searing pain she'd felt the night before to come back. She opened her eyes in surprise when she realized that she didn't feel any aching. She pressed her foot harder onto the ground. Nothing.

She carefully stood up, walking around the bunk a little and trying not to be upset as the only pain she felt was a slight discomfort in her ankle. Her injury had been so superficial that she hadn't even needed a full day to recover. She scoffed, embarrassed with herself. She had actually needed Ward to  _carry_  her out of the mission? She was, without a doubt, the lamest S.H.I.E.L.D. agent ever.

She was about to open the door of her bunk when she noticed a small, folded sheet of paper on the floor. Her name was written in beautiful cursive letters on the front. Very intrigued, Skye picked the letter up and sat back down on the bed to read it.

_Dear Skye,_

_I am terribly sorry that this is to be our goodbye, but I didn't want to wake you. You've gone through so much in the past few hours that I thought the least I could do for you would be to let you get your rest. I'm absolutely gutted that we didn't get to spend more time together, but I think it'd be best for everyone if I head back to the lab where I belong. One mission was quite enough for me._

_You've got a really great team here, Skye. And I'm not just saying that because you're with my sister. Leo's told me about your search to find your family. I want you to know that I sincerely hope you find what you're looking for. But you should also know that there are so many people around you that care for you deeply. They can be your family if you'd like them to be._

_I hope that one day we can meet again and you can tell me all of your exciting stories about being out in the field. But in the meantime, could I ask a favor of you? Could you look out for Jemma for me? She doesn't share a lot of things with me, because we're not very close, but I know she considers you to be a dear friend. (Leo looks after her, of course, and I love him for that. But sometimes he can be a bit thick, do you know what I mean?) I would be ever so grateful to you._

_Thank you for making me feel welcome. I'll never forget it._

_Love always,_

_Ellie_

Skye wiped away the tear that had fallen on her cheek. Where was Ward? She would kill him for not waking her up when he said he would.

She carefully folded up the note, trying not to taint the beautiful handwriting, and placed it on her shelf. She opened the door of her bunk and nearly ran straight into Coulson.

"Skye," he said in surprise, glancing down at her foot. "You're walking."

She rolled her eyes and groaned. "I know, all right? I'm sorry I was such a wimp. But to be fair, it actually  _did_  hurt like hell last night."

He shook his head. "You're not a wimp, Skye. But I'm glad you're okay."

She noticed a flash of fear in his eyes, and remembered what had happened before she'd left the fighting. "Hey. Is everything okay? What happened with those guards? Did you find out what the 0-8-4 was?"

"The 0-8-4's been delivered. And we don't really know what the guards were up to. But, Skye, we've got more pressing matters to attend to right now." She looked at him in confusion. "I just got off the phone with Agent Garrett. Mike Peterson just attacked the safe house in Sydney."

" _What_?" she asked incredulously. "Do you have any idea why?"

"We must be getting closer, Skye," he responded, and even though she still saw the fear in his eyes, he was smirking. "The Clairvoyant knows we're closing in on him."

"You want to move forward with the list," she guessed.

He nodded. "Garrett and I narrowed it down to thirteen candidates. But it's gonna be tricky to investigate them, especially since the Clairvoyant always seems to be one step ahead of us."

"Actually, sir, I think I have a way around that. But…well, we'd need a few more agents."

Coulson smiled. "We're at the Hub, Skye. You can take your pick. What did you have in mind?"

* * *

The first thing she noticed when she came to was the cold. She was lying on a bare stone floor. She tried to sit up, and realized that her hands and feet were both bound. Her eyes widened in panic and she opened her mouth to cry out, only to find her voice strangled by a gag. The surprise made her cough, but because her airway was constricted by the gag, she began to choke.

A shadow fell on the stone floor in front of her, and someone knelt down to quickly remove the gag from her mouth. She coughed herself hoarse before looking up into an unfamiliar face. The man in front of her had kind eyes, and was gently patting her back. It was a little disconcerting, but it wasn't enough to keep her from trying to scream again.

"Hey, hey, hey," he said, quickly covering her mouth with his hand. "No, no, please don't scream. I have to knock you out again if you scream." Ellie was confused. He seemed to be looking at her with genuine concern, which was pretty strange, considering he was her captor. "Promise you won't scream?"

She hesitated, but figured that if she wanted to find out a way out of wherever she was, she would have to start by getting the man's hand off of her mouth. She slowly nodded, and he breathed out a sigh of relief before removing his hand. He turned around to grab a glass of water, holding it up to her lips.

"Here," he said, and despite every survival instinct telling her not to drink whatever they were giving her, she gulped the water greedily. When she had finished, he set the glass down.

"So did they tell you that you were joining the R&D Think Tank, too?" he muttered, and Ellie remembered what had happened before she'd been knocked out. Was she actually being held  _captive_  because she had accidentally stumbled upon HYDRA? What the hell had she gotten herself into?

Whoever the man in front of her was, he didn't seem like he really wanted to be there. Maybe that's the reason why Ellie thought it would be okay to talk to him.

"Project Phoenix," she croaked. "It was-"

"HYDRA," the man finished, his face showing the dread that she felt.

"But I thought HYDRA was destroyed," she whispered. "After-"

"That's what everybody thought. I guess we were wrong though. 'Cut off one head, two more will take its place.' We probably should've seen it coming."

"From the flames of the past we burned," she breathed.

"Out of the ashes, we rise," he said along with her.

He laughed softly, but it was filled with scorn. "I bet they think they're so clever."

She was about to ask him what she was doing there when she heard the sound of a commotion coming from somewhere above her head. It sounded like they were on an airplane, but Ellie wasn't so sure. A door slammed from somewhere over to the right.

"Pollack," a voice shouted in the doorway. The man in front of her turned around to face their visitor.

"What is it?"

"We've been made. Somebody's overridden our controls. It's a Code Red. Grab the girl and get to the helipad."

"But-"

"Now, Pollack!"

Pollack turned back to Ellie, a pained expression on his face. "I'm really sorry about this," he whispered, and before she could ask him what was happening, the world around her faded to black.

END OF PART ONE

TO BE CONTINUED...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who has taken the time to read this story. I apologize for the lengthy final chapter, but I really wanted it to flow right into End of the Beginning, and I wanted to finish it before seeing Captain America: The Winter Soldier. I'm not sure when I will have Part Two written, mostly because I don't know if it will happen simultaneously with CA:TWS or after Turn, Turn, Turn, but I definitely have an idea of where I want it to go.
> 
> Again, thank you. Your support has meant the world to me. :)


	8. Out of the Ashes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the first chapter of Out of the Ashes (Part Two of From the Flames of the Past), which takes place in between Turn, Turn, Turn and Providence. The rest of the chapters will be posted under a separate story. Thank you so much to everyone who has asked about the sequel, and for being so patient with me. :)

PART TWO

_She was shivering. Her small hands pounded on the ice, trying to break through the thin barrier separating her from the even smaller hands on the other side. Someone was screaming for help._

_And it was all her fault._

_She looked around at the empty wasteland, knowing that there was no one else for at least a mile. The screams were her own. No one was coming._

_And it was all her fault._

_She tried to calm down long enough to search for a crack in the ice. She found one a few feet away, but it'd already been too long._

_And it was all her fault._

_She plunged her hand into the water._

* * *

Her senses came back slowly, as if her body were testing them out one at a time. She heard the sound of footsteps pacing a few meters away, the steady rhythm raising up dust mites on what sounded like a stone floor. She slowly opened her eyes, but the world around her was the same pitch black as before. The inside of her mouth tasted rotten, like she hadn't had anything to eat or drink in a while. She tried to remember where she was. It felt like she was lying on some sort of bed made out of canvas. A cot, maybe. Why would she be lying on a cot?

As her eyes started to adjust to the dimness around her, she slowly tried to sit up and realized that her hands and feet were both tied together.

Oh.

Right.

She opened her mouth to cry out, but her voice caught in her throat from disuse. The footsteps stopped.

"You're awake. Oh, thank God."

Ellie looked up into the face of the man who had taken her captive. As he took a step forward, she shrunk back from him so severely that she fell off of the cot. She knew she wouldn't be able to get away, but she still made a desperate attempt to get to the corner. She was shivering, and every muscle in her body screamed for her to stop moving, but she had to get as far away as possible from him.

"Hey, hey, take it easy," the man said, holding up his hands in a gesture of conciliation. "I'm not gonna hurt you."

"Oh, really?" she said scornfully, and cursed herself for the weakness in her voice. She mustered up all the venom she could. "You think I'm supposed to trust  _you_ , when you bloody knocked me out?"

He groaned a little. "I'm  _really_ , really sorry about that, okay? I had to get you out of there before-"

"Oh, I'm sure you're  _sorry_ ," she spat. "Tying me up down here doing God knows what to me while I've been unconscious."

His face seemed to a pale a little and he opened and closed his mouth, apparently at a loss for words. Ellie felt her burst of energy fade as she remembered the conversation she'd had with him before she'd blacked out. How Project Phoenix had just been a cover-up for HYDRA's influence at S.H.I.E.L.D. How he had been recruited under false pretenses, too. How someone had run in saying they'd been made. She thought the other man had said his name was Pollack.

Ellie didn't know his story. But the fact of the matter was that she was tied up in a dark, cold cell. And he wasn't.

"I…I would  _never_ -" he stammered.

"All right, all right, don't get your panties in a twist," she said, weakly rolling her eyes. "Do you have any water, by chance?" She hated having to ask him for anything, but her throat was so parched that she was fairly certain she would start hallucinating soon if she didn't get something into her system.

A look of realization dawned on his face. "Yes, yes, of course. Just hold on."

He quickly walked over to the cell door and held up his hand through the bars as he locked it behind him. "I'll be right back. Just…stay right there."

As he took off down a dark hallway, Ellie half-heartedly shouted, "I don't exactly think that will be a problem."

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a flash of light, and nearly jumped when she turned her head. There was another person standing outside of her cell. He held himself upright, hands folded in front of him, and she thought she could see the handle of a gun peeking out of his waist. He paid no attention to her, eyes fixed steadfastly in front of him. There was something about him that disturbed Ellie, and it wasn't just the fact that he was obviously guarding her cell, making sure she didn't escape. It was something in his eyes. She couldn't tell in the dim light, but they seemed empty, not at all like the kind eyes she saw in her other captor.

Ellie scolded herself. No matter how nice he seemed, Pollack had still knocked her out and he was still instrumental in her capture. She didn't, and couldn't, trust him. But from what she could tell, he had never kidnapped someone before. In all honesty, he actually seemed pretty clueless. She realized that he was probably just as much of HYDRA's pawn as she was.

No, she didn't have to trust him. But maybe she could use his naïveté to her advantage.

She tried to move to a sitting position, and rested her back on the cold stone wall behind her. She moved around a little until she was certain that she felt the cool metal object resting on her sternum. Good. So HYDRA hadn't found it. She let out a small sigh, surprised at the relief she felt. No matter what had happened to her while she'd been unconscious, her clothes had definitely remained on.

After a few moments, she heard the sound of hurried footsteps in the hallway. Pollack was returning with a glass of water in one hand and a small plate in the other.

"Hey, buddy, would, uh, would you mind…?" He was looking at the silent guard, nodding towards the door and gesturing that his hands were full.

There was a pause, and Ellie was starting to think that the guard was actually a statue and not a person at all, before he suddenly moved towards the door and unlocked it, holding it open for Pollack. Pollack gave him an awkward nod, and was about to walk through the door when the guard placed his hand on Pollack's arm.

"Hail HYDRA," the guard said in a monotonous voice. Ellie was grateful that she had nothing in her stomach, because she would have almost certainly vomited. For his part, Pollack looked everywhere but directly at the guard.

"Yeah, uh, ha-hail HYDRA," he said, nodding and looking like he very much wanted the guard to stop touching him. The guard's hand remained where it was for an uncomfortable amount of time before he gave a curt nod and stepped back out into the hallway.

The look on Pollack's face when he turned towards Ellie, eyes widened and mouth slightly open in shock, was so amusing that it almost made Ellie laugh out loud.

Almost.

Pollack shook his head and seemed to remember why he had food and water in his hands. He quickly walked over to Ellie and knelt down in front of her. By the time he held the glass of water up to her lips, she felt like she was going to cry from anticipation. How long had she been unconscious? Surely she shouldn't be so dehydrated. Halfway through the glass, she was drinking so greedily that a little of the water ended up spilling on the floor in front of her.

"Ah. Damn it. Sorry," he said, gently wiping some of the water off of her chin.

"You know, this would be a lot less troublesome for you if you, you know…" she held up her bound hands, giving him a rueful smile.

He smiled back at her, but nervously glanced behind him before lowering his voice. "I'm not really supposed to…"

"Oh, please," she said, plastering a wide grin on her face and trying to appear as innocent as possible. "Like I could get past you. You're so big and strong, I'd hardly make it three steps."

The look he gave her in response was one she hadn't been expecting. It was as if he knew exactly what she was up to. But he must have thought there was some truth to her words, because he glanced behind him again before untying her hands.

As soon as he began to untie her feet, she raised her legs and kicked him in the jaw, sending him stumbling backwards. She reached one hand down the front of her jumper and brought the small metal object to her mouth. Pollack immediately recovered himself and hurled himself at her, catching her hand in his and pulling the object from her lips.

"What the  _hell_  do you think you're doing?" he hissed at her. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

She glared at him as he yanked the chain off of her neck and sat up. "And don't you ever try something like that again," he shouted, surreptitiously sneaking a glance behind him. The guard was in the same position as before. He turned back around to face her and gave her a look of barely concealed annoyance.

"Seriously," he murmured, leaning in closer to her. "What were you even trying to accomplish with this...?" He looked down at the object in his hands. "Is this a dog whistle?" he asked in bewilderment.

"Give it back," she ordered, trying to grab it from him. He held it up over his head.

"Not a chance," he whispered. "You think HYDRA would be okay with me letting you have this? No way. Even if it is…just a dog whistle." He smiled at her, a look of disbelief on his face. "I mean, a  _dog whistle_?"

Ellie huffed out angrily, ignoring him as her eyes fell on the plate of food a few feet away. It wasn't much, really, just a chunk of bread. It hardly looked appetizing anyways, but the mere sight of it made Ellie's mouth water. She reached over and snatched it up, biting down on the hard crust. As soon as the first morsel of the stale bread registered on her taste buds, the hunger pains attacked at full force. Before she could stop herself, she was shoving the bread in her mouth, barely swallowing one piece before taking another bite.

Pollack placed his hands on her wrists, forcing her to stop. "Hey, take it easy. You need to slow down. If you eat too fast, you're gonna hurl."

She paused, and it took a lot more strength than she was comfortable admitting to not cry. "Blimey, how long have I been out?" she whispered.

"Three days," he replied as he released her wrists. She slowly nodded and began to take smaller bites. Her stomach was crying out in agony, but she knew that her digestive system was in a fragile state if she hadn't eaten in three days.  _Three days_? How much had she missed?

"Where's Sitwell?" she asked, another icy fear taking hold of her as she remembered him shooting her with the dendrotoxin.

Pollack scoffed. "Sitwell. He's the one who got to you, too, huh? Figures. No, Sitwell isn't here. I don't know where he is. He's probably off somewhere in a nice comfortable office at S.H.I.E.L.D. far, far away from any real danger."

"And…where are  _we_ , exactly?" She didn't want to talk to him, but he seemed to be pretty willing to answer her questions. She leaned back against the wall, resting her head on the stone.

He shook his head. "One of HYDRA's old bunkers, I guess. Somewhere on the east coast?" He glanced down at his hands. "I'm sorry. That's all I can tell you. But to be honest," he lowered his voice. "I don't really know where we are either."

There were so many things that didn't make sense. "But…why would HYDRA kidnap me? Why not just kill me?"

Pollack met her eyes, catching her off-guard. He paused. "They need you to make something."

"Make what?"

"I don't know, Ellie." He looked at her pleadingly. "But you'd better give them what they want. Who knows what they'll do to you?"

Despite the gravity of the situation, she couldn't help but notice the most trivial of details. She smiled and closed her eyes, a wave of tiredness washing over her. "You know my name, but I don't know yours."

He seemed to weigh his options for a few moments before coming to a decision. "It's Benny."

"Benny," she repeated in a whisper. After a beat, her eyes flew open. "Wait. Benjamin Pollack. I know that name. Why do I know that name?"

An inexplicable look of embarrassment passed over his face. "Yeah, uh…I may or may not have been recruited by S.H.I.E.L.D. after committing a few…felonies with one of those alien weapons from the Battle of New York," he said sheepishly.

Her jaw dropped. "You mean  _you're_  the one who stole item 47? But…that was the only weapon found on the ground that wasn't dormant." Despite herself, the scientist in her couldn't help but ask, "How on earth were you able to reverse engineer the technology?"

Benny shook his head. "Honestly, I have no idea. But whatever mojo I have that made it work, Project Insight was  _very_  interested in using it to activate more of the weapons."

Ellie's stomach plummeted at the thought of HYDRA having access to activated Chitauri weapons, but there was something he had said that was confusing. "Project Insight?"

He waved a hand dismissively. "Phoenix. Insight. 'Out of the shadows, into the light.' It's all the same thing. It was all HYDRA's way of rising up out of S.H.I.E.L.D."

"But that doesn't make any sense. S.H.I.E.L.D. was founded to  _defeat_  organizations like HYDRA in the first place!"

Benny raised his eyebrows. "Then what better place to hide out in? I mean, think about it, Ellie. All those resources. All that intel. With the right people and the right leverage, they could bide their time until they were ready to strike again. I hate to admit it, but it's kind of ingenious."

Ellie didn't even want to think about those implications. It was too absurd. If what Benny was saying was true, then everything Ellie had been working for had been a lie. No. She refused to believe that S.H.I.E.L.D. could have been so heavily infiltrated by HYDRA. Yes, there may have been factions, but at its core, the organization existed to protect the world. Ellie just happened to have found herself on the wrong side of the civil war.

"And why are  _you_  here, Benny?" she asked quietly.

He looked down at his hands. "Same as you. Got invited to join a project, project turned out to be fuelled by evil, it was too late to get out, and before you know it…" He opened up his arms and gave her a little bow. "Here I am."

For some strange reason, Ellie thought he was trying to get her to smile. "No, I get that, but why are you  _here_?" She lowered her voice. "What have they got on you?"

There was a long pause as he caught her gaze, and his eyes were filled with so much pain that she suddenly didn't want to know.

"They have my girl," he whispered.

There was a loud clang and Benny immediately stood up to greet the three men that entered the cell. Ellie tried to make herself smaller by shrinking further into the corner, but the man at the center of the group marched right up to her. He was dressed like a military man, a general, perhaps, or a colonel of some sort. He smiled down at her, but it resembled more of a grimace, and it did nothing to assuage the sense of foreboding Ellie felt settle in her bones.

"Ah, so she's finally awake. Excellent." A look of concern passed over his face and he glanced over his shoulder at Benny. "But what is she doing on the floor? Is that really the proper way to treat our guest? To be honest, Benjamin, I expected more from you."

Benny quickly walked over and helped Ellie stand up. Her legs wobbled a little at first, but after a few seconds she felt confident enough to stand on her own. She gave Benny a small nod in thanks, but he held on for just a moment longer, looking at her as if she would fall right back down to the ground if he moved away.

She turned to face the man in front of her. She wasn't entirely familiar with American military insignias, but from what she could tell, he was a high-ranking officer in the Air Force. The name plate on his right pocket read "Talbot," but that didn't really mean anything to her. As far as she was concerned, he was another person standing between where she was now and freedom. And there was also the troubling fact that he was associated somehow with HYDRA. She raised herself to her fullest height, and even though the top of her head couldn't have even reached his collarbone, she poured as much hatred in her voice as she could to make up for the discrepancy.

"And I suppose you treat all of your  _guests_  as if they're some kind of criminal, locked up in a dark cell with barely any food or water?" She scoffed. "Boy, I'd sure hate to come round your house for Christmas."

He gave her another grimace. Ellie had only known him for about a minute, but she could already tell that he wasn't accustomed to having to sweet-talk his way through things. "We're sorry for having brought you in the way we did, but we run a very delicate operation here. We needed to make sure that you were unable to divulge our location. But I assure you, if you'll help us, you will be treated with the utmost respect, not to mention receive much nicer accommodations."

Ellie glared at him. "And if I don't?"

His face remained unchanged, but she noticed a small twitch near his lips. He cleared his throat. "Why don't you at least hear what it is we're asking of you?"

Despite herself, Ellie shook her head in bewilderment. "I don't understand. What could  _I_  possibly offer you?"

Talbot began to pace in front of her, but his eyes remained fixed on her face. "We've looked through your file, Dr. Simmons. Your work has been very impressive. Unfortunately, as you know, most of the pharmaceuticals you've developed have been destroyed. But," he paused. "We're confident that you will be able to recreate them. One in particular, actually. I believe you call it the GH-325?"

She tried not to show any surprise in her expression. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said slowly.

The grimace disappeared. Good. Ellie hated this man and his false pretenses anyway. She would rather know what she was really facing than be lulled into an artificial sense of security.

"It appears Dr. Simmons has forgotten all about her work. What do you think? Does it look that way to you?" he asked one of the other men in the room.

The guard nodded in response, even though he avoided Talbot's eyes. "Yes, Colonel."

"Yes, it does," the colonel repeated quietly, and then he smiled at Ellie. It wasn't a grimace this time. It was an actual smile.

And it was the most terrifying thing Ellie had ever seen in her life.

"That's a shame. But maybe all you need is a little help remembering." He motioned to the two guards, who began walking towards her. She knew it would be futile to resist, but she squirmed in their grasps anyways.

"I'll never help you," she vowed as they marched her past Talbot into the hallway. She had no idea where they were taking her. When his voice responded from behind them, she felt a chill run up her spine.

"Well, I wouldn't be so sure about that. Everyone has their…limits."

* * *

_The scene around her changed. She was now standing in a hallway, hands held behind her back. This time she kept her screams inside. But they still coursed through her as she heard Garrett's smug voice coming through the speakers._

_"All right. Let 'em have it. But shoot that one in the kneecaps."_

_Part of her was furious with him for standing up to Garrett, but the bigger part of her had never been more proud. She pleaded with Agent Hand to explode the doors and interfere, but Hand didn't wanted to risk more men without knowing what was happening on the other side._

_That's when the lights went out._

_And that's when the shooting began._

_She bit down on her lip to keep from crying out. They needed to get in there. She needed to get in there. She couldn't even process what was happening. HYDRA. Gunshots. Fitz. Without her. Everything was wrong. Everything was wrong. Everything was wrong._

"Jemma," a voice said softly. "Jemma, wake up. It's just a dream."

Jemma sat up abruptly, breathing heavily. She placed her hands on her neck and briefly closed her eyes, trying to calm down. Had it really all just been a dream? She turned her head to see Fitz looking at her with concern, and it took her about five seconds to figure out where they were.

They were sitting on one of the Bus couches. She looked around the common area, which was covered in little shards of glass. A few feet ahead of them was the broken pane that had been shattered when they'd been attacked at the Hub. As Jemma took in the destroyed S.H.I.E.L.D. symbol, her heart fell. She was awake, but the nightmare had been real.

She felt Fitz's eyes boring into the side of her face.

"Hey," he said quietly. "You okay?"

"Yes, Fitz, I'm fine," she said a little too tightly. She suddenly realized where she was. "Did I fall asleep here?"

Fitz avoided her eyes, his ears turning pink. "Yeah, uh, I think, uh, I think we both did, actually."

Jemma remembered helping Fitz assess part of the Bus's damage the night before. After a few hours, they had gone up to the common area and told the cleaning crew to come back in the morning. She had looked around in despair at all the broken glass, and Fitz had wordlessly held her hand as she'd let out a few tears. Everything she had worked for, everything she had given her life to for so long, was gone, shattered like the broken symbol in front of them. Fitz had cleared off the glass from one of the couches and as she curled up into his side, she tried not to think about how she had almost lost him that day. Jemma knew that they would have to talk about everything eventually, but she was content to just sit with him in silence, surrounding by the broken remains of what had become their home since they'd joined Coulson's team.

Obviously, somewhere in that time, they had fallen asleep. Jemma didn't really care. It was hardly the first time she had passed out with Fitz. They spent so much time working in the lab that they often lost track of their sleep schedules, and they'd both had their fair share of crashing on the lab benches. Even back at the Academy, they had endured several all-nighter attempts together for some of the harder exams. No, falling asleep next to each other was nothing new to them.

But something was different this time. Fitz was scratching the back of his neck and still avoiding her gaze. Jemma was about to ask him why he was acting so weird when she noticed a small red mark on his right cheek.

"Fitz," she said, reaching out to lightly touch his cheek. "What happened? That's not from yesterday, is it?"

Fitz chuckled and shook his head. He had a smirk on his face.

"What?" she asked, hating when Fitz knew something she didn't.

He looked her in the eyes and pointed at his cheek. "This was all you, sister."

Jemma snorted. "I beg your pardon?"

Fitz dropped his look of mock accusation, glancing down at his hands. "Yeah, you were, uh, having some kind of nightmare, I guess." He laughed a little, but Jemma could tell he was just trying to make light of the situation. "Woke me up with all your thrashing about."

She felt her cheeks burning. "I…oh, bloody hell, Fitz, I'm sorry."

Fitz shook his head, waving his hand indifferently. "Don't worry about it. Besides," he sighed as he stood up. "Everyone already knows you can't keep your hands off me."

Jemma rolled her eyes, but she couldn't help but smile. Fitz might make lame jokes, but at least he was alive to make them. "Come on," he said, holding out a hand to help her off the couch. "It's gonna be a long day. The crew's probably going to arrive any minute now, and I don't know about you, but I have never wanted breakfast more in my entire life."

Jemma had to admit that she was feeling quite peckish herself. But there was something she had to do first.

"You go ahead, Fitz. I've got to go talk to Coulson about something."

"What about?"

"Oh, it's…nothing important," she lied.

He raised his eyebrows at her, but she spun on her heel before he could interrogate her any further.

"Jemma," she heard him say softly. She stopped in her tracks, not wanting to turn around and see the mirror of her own worry. But it was Fitz.

"Yeah?" she said, forcing a smile and turning to see that he was still standing where she'd left him, in the middle of the sea of glass. She had the sudden urge to run up to him and throw her arms around his neck, just to make sure that he was still there. She remained where she was, but she felt comforted knowing that in the midst of the turmoil that they were enduring, she still had him. They still had each other.

"I'm sure she's fine," he assured her. "She got out to the Sandbox before the siege."

Jemma shook her head. "You know, Fitz, everyone's always telling me how bad of a liar I am." She turned around and headed for the exit. "But you're hardly much better."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot thank everyone enough for the amazing response I had to this story. It was never supposed to be more than a little fluffy thing about the possibility of Simmons having a sister, but obviously it grew to be something so much more than that. I really hope that the sequel is worth the wait and that everyone enjoys the rest of the story.
> 
> Below is a link to the soundtrack for Part One, as well as the track listing. These are just a collection of songs that I was inspired by while writing this. It's in some semblance of a chronological order, but most of the songs can be applied to more than one scene/character, so feel free to make your own interpretations.
> 
> 8tracks.com/msdevindanielle/from-the-flames-of-the-past
> 
> 1\. Marvel Studios Fanfare - Brian Tyler
> 
> 2\. It's Time - Imagine Dragons
> 
> 3\. Lemonworld - The National
> 
> 4\. Precious - Depeche Mode
> 
> 5\. Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Lorde
> 
> 6\. Performance Issues - Alan Silvestri
> 
> 7\. Battle Scars - Lupe Fiasco with Guy Sebastian
> 
> 8\. The Phoenix - Fall Out Boy
> 
> 9\. Collide - Dishwalla
> 
> 10\. Say Something - A Great Big World
> 
> 11\. Everything Changes - Staind
> 
> 12\. Come Away to the Water (feat. Rozzi Crane) - Maroon 5
> 
> 13\. Broken Crown - Mumford & Sons
> 
> 14\. Pompeii - Bastille
> 
> 15\. Help I'm Alive - Metric


End file.
